The First Storm
by Dark Shade 75
Summary: They were all enjoying the peace they had won for themselves. They had a right to. But something was brewing far away, and it would not be ignored. Rated T for some fighting violence, and cussing. Rating may or may not change, based on reviews. PoxTigress begins in later chapters. Dedicated to Soul of a Lion.
1. The Coming Darkness

**Hey guys, I've been reading and reviewing stories for over a year now, and finally decided that I should at least try to put my two cents in. Some of you have made amazing stories, I only hope I don't fail miserably in comparison. The first chap's gonna be short, but dont worry, if I continue this, the rest will definitely be much longer. I'm aiming for a couple thousand words a chap after this. It is just the intro after all, and to see if anyone's interested. Critique is appreciated, I only want to get better.**

**Oh, and I own nothing, except an OC that I won't introduce for a long while, I think. DreamWorks owns it all!**

**In the words of my favorite writer, who will be missed,**

"Hope you all enjoy. Let us begin"

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The day started as any other would in the Valley of Peace. Calm, the sun was shining, and you could hear the villagers down in the markets. The famous masters' shouts could be heard from the Jade Palace. But peace never truly lasts. And our favorite heroes would soon find  
out that was all too true.

"Monkey, more agility, concentrate!" Master Shifu was watching the five do their usual run on the training course, Tigress excluded. She and Po were sparring again, as the course no longer had the same appeal to either of them. (Well, Po never really liked the thing in the first place)

"Ready, Po?"

"You know it!" Tigress smirked._ Too easy_. As they charged, Po immediately attempted to throw his belly into her, to knock her across the room. He had recently perfected it, but unfortunately in his earnest, began using it much too often. Tigress quickly sidestepped, and grabbed his foot as he flew by, watching his shocked and confused face as it passed her, returning it with a much too relaxed smile. She then flung him around and into the wall, effectively ending the spar.

"Ugh... what happened?" Po said groggily, as he rubbed his head. This was going to hurt later.

"Ouch..." Scratch that, now.

"You got your butt beat, buddy." Mantis exclaimed, patting Po's back with his thingies. (Seriously, what do you call them? Pincers?) The rest of them walked up, having finished their training for the day. "At least she didn't throw you down the stairs again." Tigress walked up, and put her hand on Po's shoulder.

"Po, I know you're still very happy about having designed your first move, but that doesn't mean you can always use it." Po shook his head.

"I know, but couldn't you let me have my fun, just once? I mean, you guys all have super awesome moves, didn't you ever want to use them a lot?" Master Shifu then coughed for their attention, and they all looked over.

"If you're all quite done with your training now, you may go eat." At this, Po's eyes visibly got brighter, and his mood improved greatly. "Except you, Po. You will fix the wall you just broke. Then you may eat."

"Ahhh, come on! Tigress tossed me through it! How is that my fault?" Po whined, earning an eye roll from Tigress. The rest looked considerably upset as well, though. Shifu noticed this, and raised a brow. Crane decided to speak up.

"It's just that, if Po doesn't cook, and we're certainly not going to let Tigress do it," at this she audibly growled, " Then who will cook dinner?" Shifu opened his mouth, then closed it in thought. Everyone watched him, hoping for a miracle. And one did come.

"Very well. Po can cook dinner for you," Everyone cheered, including Po, "But he will wake up early tomorrow, before the gong, to fix it then. If you need me, I will be meditating." And with that, he left them to their small victory. Except for one.

"But... But..." Po stammered out, not fully grasping what he had just been forced into. This was going to suck, he thought. Thankfully Tigress saved him from his misery.

"It's alright, Po. It was my fault. I will help you in the morning," she said as they all walked back to the kitchen. She glanced out the window, and noticed the dark clouds accumulating outside. Odd, she thought, such nice weather turns into this? She shook off the thought, and continued with the others to their meal.

Meanwhile, Shifu was relaxing atop his staff, in the Dragon Grotto. He too, noticed the clouds. As the rain started to fall, his form wavered, ever so slightly. Finally, lightning clashed seemingly all around him, and he fell, clutching his staff to his chest. He gazed up at the clouds, and fear crept onto his face.

"Something is wrong, I can feel it," he said, perturbed by the waves of emotion clouding his mind. "I can only hope my students are ready to face whatever this is. Only one thing I know for certain." At this, he slowly made his way to the top of a rock, nearby, overlooking the valley and the palace. He looked over it all, and sighed.

"A storm is coming."

**Well? Again, the next will be longer. If this does get good reviews, the story should end up at 50k words at least, unless I make a sequel that is. But I'm getting ahead of myself. For all I know, you hated this. Of course, there wasn't much info here to give you an opinion really. Plus, I feel like I may have ripped someone off. If I have, please tell me! The story I'm planning I'm sure hasn't been remotely done before, but this intro seemed familiar. Anyways, see you later!**


	2. A Bad Dream

**Hey all! I wanted to get another chapter up soon, to show that I really want to try this for real. And like I promised, this chapter is longer! Still not as long as I'm planning for them to get, but I think its decent enough for a first real chapter. And thank you to my first couple of reviewers! I had always guessed as a reader that reviews helped the authors, but I hadn't thought it'd make me that happy! Yay!**

**I own nothing, it's all DreamWorks *cry***

The Next Day

**Po's room, first hours of the morning**

Po was fidgeting under his blanket, tossing and turning. He was obviously having a nightmare, anyone could see that. But Po did not have the luxury of this information. He instead had the distinct pleasure of facing the most disturbing vision he'd had in his dreams in a long while. Well, maybe not as strange as kung fu radish master, but you get the picture.

**Po's dreamscape**

"No! No, get away!" yelled Po, running as fast as he could from the seemingly infite darkness behind him. He couldn't see anything, but he knew something was chasing him. Something big. He couldn't get far enough away from it. He'd been running for what seemed like hours, and finally saw something up ahead, in the vast black surrounding him. A small light, no, a door! He subconciously fist pumped, and headed straight for it. Reaching it, he slammed the door behind him, cutting off whatever may have been following. Resting his head on the door, he sighed, relaxing himself.

"There's always a way, right, Po?"

He quickly turned, to find the hidden voice's source. As he searched, he took in the setting of this room. Unlike the last, this one seemed to be in some kind of forest. Very dimly lit, and thick foliage in all directions. Except one. No, here, in place of the trees, stood a lone figure. His eyes went wide, and his brain tried to form some kind of question.

_ Well? Come on Po, come up with something!_ he thought furiously, deciding to say the first thing that came to mind. "Who are you? Where am I?"

"Both good questions. Unfortunately, the first cannot be answered yet, and the second is not relevant to what I am here for," said the figure, who began to pace. "No, I'm afraid there are more pertinent things to discuss."

"Such as?" Po asked, not really liking how the figure seemed worried.

"Such as what is threatening to take place in the near future." Now Po got really confused. "Po, no matter what happens, you must remember that there is always a way. As hopeless as things might seem, know that all you need to keep going, is yourself." Po once again tried to come up with something to say, something to ask, but he drew blanks. Suddenly, he started falling, watching above him, as the figure stood and watched.

"Oh, and one more thing. 'When darkness falls, a light must always rise'."

Po shot up on his bed mat, looking around trying to grasp what he had just seen.

"Po! Are you alright?" a voice said from beside him. He looked up to find Tigress kneeling next to him. "I heard some noise coming from here. What happened?" she asked, putting her hand on his shoulder.

"N-nothing. Just a bad dream is all," he said, earning a disbelieving look from her in the process. He didn't quite believe it himself, though.

"Alright," she wasn't going to push for answers, yet. "But that 'bad dream' had good timing. You need to get up and help me with the wall before the gong sounds."

_Ugh, forgot about that. _"Fine, fine. I'm getting up. Give me a minute?" Tigress sighed, and walked towards the door.

"You have thirty seconds. Get moving, _Dragon Warrior_." She left him, and he waited to hear her footsteps grow quieter, until he scratched his head.

"That's the last time I use jiu in a recipe before bed." He shook it off and went to find Tigress.

**A few hours later**

It was morning, and the masters were finally rising, only to find Po and Tigress had already gone off to the training room.

"I can't believe it. She actually got him up before the gong." said Monkey as he drowsily rubbed his eyes. Viper looked over and smiled sweetly.

"I never had a doubt. If there's anything Po would get up for, it's her," she seemed to think for a moment."Well, that and a free buffet." She jokingly remarked. The other masters snickered at this. "But Po being up is not what I'm confused about. Why didn't Shifu wake us up? And the gong hasn't gone off."

"Yeah, and judging by the sun, it should have gone off an hour ago. Man, I really ate too much last night, I would have slept right through it!" said Mantis, shaking his head.

"Well, at any rate, let's get to morning training, maybe they fixed the wall already."

_The Training Room_

"Po, if you drop that hammer on my foot one more time, I swear-"

"I'm sorry! These paws were meant to hold ladles, not tools!" Po had proven to be clumsy in all regards this morning, unfortunately with no one else around, Tigress was taking the brunt of it.

"Alright, alright. Just hand me some nails. We would have gotten this done already, you know. We allow you some snack breaks on low priority missions, this isn't one."

"Well, if you think about it, it sorta is one." Po shrugged. "I mean, it's just a wall.

"Don't make me ruin another wall, _Dragon Warrior._" Tigress threatened, looking at him out of the corner of her eye as she worked. "Another nail, please." Po handed her one, and had a confident smirk growing on his face. _Oh no... Po, don't do it_ she thought, _I swear I will knock you so far this time..._

"Try me, kitty."

_Oh, no he didn't... _She pounced, tackling him down to the floor, holding his arms above his head, glaring daggers at him. "Well? That's it? You're not going to even try to stop me?" She then noticed his cheeks had gone red. And his eyes were looking over towards the entrance... _Wait..._ She glanced over, and saw their friends, who had apprently just walked in, mouths hanging open. She immediately got up and dusted herself off, beginning to come up with an explanation for their position.

"He challenged me to another spar! That's all! Viper, I see that smirk. Don't even think it." Tigress quickly added, simultaneously thanking the gods for her orange fur. She'd seen that look before. Viper had it whenever she thought she had been proven right about something.

"Oh, I'm _sure_ that's all it was Tigress," Mantis joked. Chuckles came from the group, which only served to make her more flustered.

"That was all it was, Mantis. And as usual, it didn't last long." She victoriously looked down at Po, still on the floor, unable to form a cohesive sentence.

"Didn't last long, huh? Ouch, Po. That's gotta hurt!" retorted Mantis, earning more snickers. Now it was Po's turn to thank the gods for his... wait...

_Damnit! _thought Po, with his blush on full display. "Guys, come on. Give us a break, here."

"Cut it out, guys." Crane spoke up, much to the relief of Tigress and Po. "Besides, have either of you seen Shifu? He didn't ring the gong this morning." At this, Po's face went from blushing, to confused, to disheartened in a span of 2 seconds.

"Seriously? The one morning he let us sleep in, and I have to work?" he complained, and Tigress snorted.

"I'm the one doing the work, Po. And Mantis, make another witty comment about that, and you won't have to worry about losing your head later. It'll happen now." More chuckles from the group, as Mantis shifted uncomfortably."Anyway, no, we haven't seen Shifu here. He might still be meditating." Po suddenly looked very nervous. "What is it, Po?"

"It's just that, something always goes horribly wrong when that happens. I mean, the last time he meditated this long, we ran out of bean buns."

"Don't be ridiculous, Po."

"Students!" Shifu burst in, clutching his staff. "We have a problem."

"I told you so!"

** In the kitchen, minutes later**

"So what's up, Master?" said Monkey. They had moved to the kitchen, as Po wanted to begin making breakfast. Normally Shifu would have denied such a request, as this was important, but even he needed food. He had been up all through the morning trying to decipher his feeling. His conclusion was... unsettling.

"What is 'up', Monkey, is that I believe a new threat may be looming over the horizon." Po turned from where he was preparing the food, and interjected.

"Another one? Alright I'm totally ready for this! I will Inner Peace this threat into nonexistence!"

"Po-"

"I will take it down so hard!"

"Po..."

"I'm gonna-"

"Po!" Shifu finally yelled, catching the panda's attention.

"Yes?" he timidly asked, shuffling his feet.

"Focus." Po nodded, looking down, suddenly finding his feet to be the most interested thing in the world. "I am not sure what we may face this time, but I can only hope we have the ability to stop it." Now, Po remembered his strange dream, and thought it prudent to mention. It was starting to seem like it wasn't just a bad recipe decision that caused it.

"Master?" Shifu sighed, and looked back to Po.

"Yes, Po?"

"Ummm, it's just that, this morning something actually did happen to me. Something strange, I mean." Now they all looked at him, confused. Tigress smiled inwardly, having known something was off this morning.

"And what might that be, Po?" Shifu asked, not really expecting to hear anything relevant.

"There was this dream I had. Or at least, I thought it was just a dream." Shifu motioned for him to continue, as now he was interested. "Well, I was running from something, something evil I guess. When I escaped it somehow, I can't really remember how, There was this guy talking to me."

"What did this man say?"

"Something along the lines of, 'there's always a way to win', or something. Not really sure what he referred to, though."

"Anything else?" Shifu had begun to believe his interest had been falsely placed. This _was_ Po we were talking about.

"I remember losing my grip on the world, and then nothing. Oh! And something about darkness falling." At this, Shifu interest piqued again, and his eyes grew wide.

"Darkness falling? You're sure?" Po nodded. "It couldn't be..." Shifu muttered under his breath. "I must go check on something, in Oogway's scrolls. I will be right back. And Po?"

"Yes?

"Your food is burning." At this, Po let out a yelp of surprise, and quickly returned to the stove. Shifu then left the room, leaving the group to wonder at what had been discussed.

**With Shifu, Oogway's scroll room**

"Could this be it?" he said, as he held an old scroll in his hands. "Could this really be it?" He looked down at the parchment, and read for the tenth time the label scrawled on its seal.

_For When Darkness Falls_

**And another chapter done! Hooray. Please, tell me what you think, and feel free to give me ideas. I'm new to this, so any ideas are totally welcome!**_  
_

**That dream sequence I actually got from my own life. Had something a lot like it a couple of weeks ago. Really freaked me out. **


	3. The Forgotten Prophecy

**Hey all! Here's chapter 3! Well, chapter 2 anyway. The first bit was more of a prologue. Oh well! I'd like to thank the reviewers for taking time to write a comment, and all the viewers who read! I'd like to thank one reviewer in particular, but he was a guest. You'll know who you are, I suppose. Let's get on with it, shall we?**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. It's all DreamWorks.**

Hey! I made a line! Sweet!

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**Oogway's scroll room**

As he fingered over the seal, he couldn't help but grow even more worried. This had been Oogway's last scroll before he departed from this life. With it had come a warning. Shifu attempted to remember how he had come to know of it...

**Flashback: One and a half years prior to the Tai Lung incident**

Shifu walked the corridor, after having finished with the Five's training for the day. As he made his way to his room, for some peace and quiet, he noticed a flicker of light coming from down the hall.

"Master Oogway? Is that you?" As he asked this, he watched the door for any response. The light that shone through the crack in the door basked the hallway in dancing shadows, slightly unnverving him. _What am I doing? I am a trained master, and I'm being frightened by shadows? _He shook his head, and opened the door. In the room, he saw Oogway sitting at a desk, scribbling furiously. This was very unlike him, as he had always been the peaceful type. And why wasn't he answering him?

"Master Oogway?" he asked once more, trying to gain the old turtle's attention.

"Hmm? Oh! Shifu, I apologize. I am afraid that I was too much invested in my work," Oogway finally replied. "Have the Five finished for today?"

"Yes, Master. I was on my way to retire for the night." As he said this, he peered over to the desk, wondering what could have been so important. This did not go unnoticed by Oogway, who chuckled for a moment, and then his face and tone grew serious.

"You would like to know what has captured my interest, yes?" Taken aback, Shifu stumbled over his next words.

"I apologize, Master. It was not my place to delve." Shifu looked down, slightly ashamed, and began to leave the room.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Shifu." Shifu stopped, and looked back at the aged turtle. Oogway spoke again, "As it so happens, this is your business. I have had a vision." Once Shifu regained his composure, he found the courage to speak.

"My business, Master? What would a vision of yours have anything to do with me?"

"Not you specifically, Shifu, but you will have need of this knowledge, when the time comes. And it is coming." Oogway's tone had grown serious again, and Shifu began to dread what he would say next. "Some time from now, when I fear I will not be there to aid you, a terrible force will wash over all of China. All I know, and hopefully all you will need to know, is in this scroll." As he continued, he rolled it and picked up a stamp. Dipping the stamp in wax, he sealed the scroll shut, and placed a strange lock on it's side.

"If I will need this information, Master, why seal it? Why not give it to me now, so that I can better prepare?" Oogway laughed, half-heartedly, and continued.

"Patience is a virtue, Shifu. And this information will not help you prepare, it will do what all information does. It will inform. You will not understand the contents, until all the pieces have been placed. Reading it now would be useless, like teaching someone of a particular chess piece's move, when they know not of chess." Shifu sighed, content in the knowledge that his master would not lead him astray. But one thing troubled him further.

"How will I know when the time comes to read it?" Oogway thought for a moment, and wrote one last message on the seal.

"This will be sufficient to let you know. However, I must tell you, Shifu, no matter how many challenges you will have faced leading up to the prophecy's unfolding, know this." Shifu leaned in closer, determined to hear every last syllable, and etch it into his memory. "One warrior may be strong, but the individual is weak. A warrior is not made up of his teachings, his style, or even his skill in combat. A true warrior is deemed so, through his heart, and the friends that fill it. That, is what makes a true warrior."

**End Flashback**

Shifu sighed again. There seemed to be a lot of that going around. There was no doubt. It was time for Oogway's last scroll to be revealed. It's outcome, though he would never admit it, terrified him. Right to his core. He had spent the better part of the last few years mulling over the circumstances of this scroll, the tired look in Oogway's eyes when he was speaking. If whatever this was, was enough to do that to the most experienced of masters, what hope could he have? How could he possibly endeavor to believe he was ready? That his students would be ready? All of this he thought while making his way back to the kitchen, where the others were still waiting.

**Kitchen, seconds after Shifu left**

"Of all the times Shifu has acted strangely, this one takes the cake," said Viper, looking around at the others. "He seemed almost distraught when Po said those words." Now everyone gazed over to the panda, still working on the food.

"Guys? The food will be done momentarily," he said, flashing that trademark smile. Crane shook his head.

"How can you think of food right now? Shifu wasn't this upset when he found out Tai Lung escaped!"

"What?" exclaimed Po, "Are you kidding me? He was totally freaking out then!" Tigress then joined in.

"No, Po. Then he was being frantic, trying to decide how to proceed. This... I've never seen him so far away. It was only for a few moments, but his eyes, I saw fear in them." She muttered the last part, almost hoping she wouldn't hear herself say it. Po began to hand out the dishes, his emotion was hard to read. _Disbelief, maybe?_ "Either way, I'd like to hear more about this dream, Po." If all eyes weren't directed at him before, they certainly were now.

"Ehh, it was probably nothing, anyways. Don't know why Shifu is getting so worked up about it." He had finished handing out the food, and sat down in his usual spot next to Tigress.

"I doubt Master Shifu would 'get worked up' about nothing, Po. Please, you know you can talk to me." She placed her paw on top of his at the table, momentarily forgetting where they were. She heard a snicker come from Mantis' direction, and realized what she was doing. She snapped her hand back, like she had touched a hot flame, and tried to pass it off. "Besides, Shifu already mentioned he had strong feelings of something dark, before you said anything. There is no such such thing as a coincidence, in my book."

"Alright, alright. But just about everything I can remember, I already told Shifu. It was a bit disturbing, so I tried to forget about it earlier. I didn't exactly jot down notes." Po paused for a moment, thinking back to the dream. "That bit that Shifu got excited about? The darkness falling?" Everyone nodded their heads, and motioned for him to keep going. "Well, I got a strange feeling that whatever this darkness was, it had already been there for some time. Like, a long time. Ancient, almost." The group fell silent, each dreading what that may mean. Monkey decided to lighten up the conversation.

"Oh great. An ancient evil. Well, if you don't mind, I'm gonna opt out on this one." This got a few chuckles, but it was short-lived. The mood seemed permanently darker now. Shifu slowly walking in, his head down, and a large scroll in his hands, didn't help.

"It was as I feared. Your dream Po, must be connected to this." He placed the scroll on the table, where everyone could see it. From there, they could all read the inscription on the side. Eyes wide now, Po stuttered.

"Th-Thats what the guy s-said in my dream!" Shifu nodded.

"Yes."

"But how could Oogway have known about a drean I'd have, so much later? He didn't even know me then!"

"I do not believe knowing you is the point, panda. Nor do I believe this scroll is a result of your dream. Rather, your dream and this scroll are a result of something larger."

"But what?"

"That would be a prudent question. I am hoping this scroll will reveal all we need to know." He stopped for a second. "Of course, Oogway was never a very straightforward man." Po groaned.

"Its gonna be a riddle, isn't it? I hate riddles."

"Whether or not it is indeed a riddle, would you rather have no warning of what is to come?" Po shook his head. "Then I suggest we be grateful that we have a riddle." He walked up to the table, and began to open the seal. Soon, everyone could hear him grumbling, as he fidgeted with the lock.

"Master? Do you not have a key?"

"No, Oogway never spoke of any key, if ever one existed." He held the lock, and examined it for clues. On its back, he saw some markings, engraved into the metal.

_When the two halves of the line meet, the lock will part._

"Ugh... You mean we need to answer a riddle, to get to a riddle? Worst prize ever." Everyone glared at Po, who shrugged, and backed off.

"Po, did the figure say anything about a line? For I see nothing on the scroll." Sure enough, the paper was blank on its outer side, excluding the lock and seal. Everyone tried to come up with an answer, for over an hour they toyed with ideas, but with no luck. Finally, it had grown darker outside, and Shifu decided they should all get some rest, and come at it with a fresh mind in the morning. Left on the table, the scroll sat in the darkness. Fitting really, considering the situation.

**And that's all she wrote! For this chapter, anyway. Slightly shorter, but there's something I want to do that will hopefully take up a chapter, so I decided to split it. I'm working on it now, so it should be out in a day! And a question to any readers who would like to answer, I'm trying to plan ahead in the story, to avoid snafoos (always wanted to use that word), and I'm trying to work out my OC. Making him not too powerful, and all that. I got to wondering, If they should have a love interest? Ideas appreciated, as always.**


	4. An Honorable Mercenary

**Alright, well it didn't take as long as I'd hoped to write. But still a chapter! I just need to get better at spacing things out in a chapter. I keep accidentally rushing through bits. But I couldn't find anything to add, it may be short, but I don't think there was much else to say here. I also decided to take a different direction than originally planned. Not a major plot change, just order of chapter wise. This was supposed to be a chapter later, maybe two. But I decided I like it here. Say hello to my OC! The only one I'll be adding, really. Besides the generic enemies, anyway. To get a good look at what he looks like, google Dark Assassin. Its the first image. Exactly as I envisioned him, minus the bird. Lol.**

**I'd like to thank monkeycyborgninja and King of 2211 for their reviews! If you haven't read their stories, do it! DO it now! Just make sure to read mine at some point, mmkay?**

**Also Pizza Man. Thank you for your review as well. Guest or not, reviews are always appreciated!**

**I own nothing. It's all Dreamworks. Actually, wait. This chapter has nothing that belongs to them! Mwahahaha!  
Haha... ha... Anyway...**

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**Northern China, Exact Location Unknown**

He stopped running for a moment, to catch his breath. Looking over his shoulder, he saw the encampment, still abuzz from his escape. Hundreds of soldiers, running around like crazy men. _Probably don't want to face the consequences of not finding me._ He chuckled slightly, and continued forward. He could remember a cave he had seen, during one of his many missions, and decided to head there. "Agh!" He clutched his side in pain. He hadn't gotten away unscatched, it seems. He looked under his cloak, and found a small knife had been wedged between his ribs. "Damn it all to hell..."

**Three Hours Earlier**

"He wants me to do what, sir?" He was sure he had heard wrong. His commander had asked him to do some questionable things in the past, but this was stepping over lines he didn't want to cross. He couldn't believe the commander would have told this weasel of a man to carry out such an order. Looking down, he quickly sized up the man standing in front of him. It had become a force of habit in his line of work. Analyzing skills and weaknesses in seconds had its benefits. As it so happens, the frail body three feet ahead of him had too many to count. This was no soldier, merely an envoy. Unfortunately, a high-standing one. So killing him was out of the question. For now.

"You heard me the first time, merc," _Oh, I really want to end him._ "Go and eliminate the leader of the nearby village. When the attack is commenced, we need them to stay in disarray."

"That part I did hear. It was the bit that followed I'm not sure of." The envoy squinted at him, clearly not amused.

"Their families are to be killed as well. Make it seem like a robbery gone sour. Can't have it looking like an assassination. That would put them on guard."

"I will not kill children. I thought I made that clear when I made my services available. Especially not innocent ones. When I signed the contract, I was told my only kill orders were to be on people who deserved it."

"Those 'children' are of the enemy! Why should you care? They'll likely be killed anyway, during the attack!"

Wincing, he shook his head. Hearing things like this was not on his to do list. He understood what would happen, but usually made it his duty to avoid such situations. He may have been an assassin, but he had a sense of honor. Taking no pride in his work, either. The little that comforted him was the fact that any he did kill were not good people. A crime boss here, a convicted felon there. Most of his jobs, before this, were from private organizations, going after information and the occasional shakedown. No killing meant he had done his job well. Now, though, this army had him doing things he'd never have done, had money not been so tight. Still criminals, but still murder.

"I'm sorry. Inform the commander that I will be sitting this one out. If he finds a different job, preferably another intel run, I would be glad to oblige." The envoy was fuming now, not that he cared.

"You cannot simply refuse! You'll not have work anywhere if you don't follow orders, I can see to that. You signed the contract, you _will_ kill this family, and you _will_ kill any others I deem suitable for your skill set!"

_I will, will I?_ Grabbing the envoy's shirt collar, he stared into the eyes of this pitiful excuse for a snow leopard. "Tell me to kill children, _one_ more time." Gulping, the messenger attempted to keep his composure. Now glaring, he made the worst decision of his soon to be ended life.

"Kill th-" His eyes went wide, mouth gaping, but making no sound. During his last seconds, looking down, he saw a sword. Half of one, anyway. The other half was busy on the other side of his body.

He let him slump down to the ground, cleaning his blade after he fell off. Shaking his head, he wondered if he regretted what he had just done. There was no way he could get away with this and still have a job. Of course, if it involved orders like _that_ he certainly didn't want any part in it. No, didn't regret it. Looking past the body, he decided to check the papers on the envoy's desk. If this truly was what the commander had wanted, there should be some proof here. Shuffling through maps, and numbers reports, he found a list of execution orders. _What the hell?_ Over two dozen names on the list, at least half of them had a note marked next to them; All witnesses killed, family members dealt with. Horrified, he turned the page. These were labeled as not having been completed yet. There was page after page of this, each with more required blood than the last.

"No... It can't be." He knew the commander was tough, but this was downright cruel. Moving past the list there was a letter, adressed to the envoy, under the stack. There were no words to describe the betrayal he felt, after having read it. He rushed out of the tent, dropping the letter to the ground on his way out.

_Here are the next targets, along with a recon mission or two to keep him happy. Write the recon off as being more important, can't have him knowing the true intention of the kills. Oh, and make sure he thinks the targets are unworthy of life. Low lifes, thugs, that kind of thing. Imagine if he knew half the people he killed were just unlucky enough to be in our crosshairs?_

Running out, he brushed past two guards, who called after him. Realizing he wasn't stopping, one of them peered inside the tent. Shouts ensued, and suddenly every soldier within a three hundred foot radius was after him.

**Present Time**

Sitting in the cave, he attended to the wound as best he could. Being stupid, and not realizing how bad it had been, he had pulled the knife out upon its discovery. That had made the trip to the cave much more difficult. It didn't help that he thought the knife had been poisoned. It was stinging much more than it should. Making the decision to stay for as short a time as possible, he finished bandaging himself and moved on. After he had learned of the treachery, he instantly knew what must be done. If they were going to resort to such horrible measures, without the slightest hint of remorse, he would stop them. They had said they were going to attempt as little death as possible during the conquest, with every avenue for surrender available to the inhabitants, but now that seemed a false hope to him. They would slaughter any opposition, no mercy. Well, then he must even the playing field. Not just even it, he needed China to win. Thankfully, he had kept tabs on the army's progress. It would be weeks before they were able to launch any kind of formal attack. But he was one person.

_This is it, Jin. Your chance to make up for the wrongs you've done. You will not waste it. You can't. Not with the lives of so many at stake. I may not be able to stop this on my own, but..._

Looking above at the night sky, he recalled hearing of those who would be perfect. He needed to warn China of the upcoming war. Who better than their heroes? But they were a distance away, it would take him days to reach them.

"Better get started, then." Gathering up his strength, he let go of his side and headed for the Valley of Peace.

**Did you like it? Then please review! Just a quick review? Even if all it says is good job? That'd make my day, really. Seeing reviews really helps. Never quite realized how much it does to an author. Or maybe it's just me. Meh. **

**I'm working on the next chapter as I write this. Well, I will after I'm done typing. So, like, in a minute or so. Okay, okay, I'm getting to it!**


	5. Revelations

**Im baaack! At first, I was having trouble with this one. Writing stuff is hard, lol. Thankfully, I had a lucky breakthrough, and managed to get this out. Thank you to my reviewers. I love getting reviews. It's like a drug with no ill side effects, other than perhaps pride. Anyway, as for the OC's backstory, that won't come for a a couple chapters. But I might release a separate story, with his origins, soon. I wanted to have him be a little more understood, given his background. My intention is for you to like him. Not hate him, killer or not. Which I think I did, hopefully.**

**On to the next chapter!**

**I own nothing. This chapter is unfortunately all theirs, this time. Damn it. **

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**The Jade Palace Barracks, The Next Morning**

_Gong!_

The Five, already outside of their rooms, stood at attention in front of Shifu. One was missing. Guess.

"Po!" Shifu yelled, not wanting to deal with this today. He had stayed up almost the whole night trying to decipher the scroll's lock. Retiring in the early hours of the morning, with no luck, he had grown frustrated. "Panda, if you're not out here in the next two seconds, I will personally-" Looking over to the Five, he grinned mischievously.

"Uh oh..." mumbled Monkey.

"I will personally let _Master Tigress _kick you down the stairs,_ twice_." _Let's see him ignore that, _thought Shifu_._ Tigress' eyes widened, then she too smirked. Unfortunately, no panda came through the door. Grumbling, he knocked the door open, only to find no one inside.

"Po?" Hearing footsteps coming down the hallway, they watched as Po calmly strolled towards them. A peach in one hand, the scroll, _open, _in the other.

"Sup, guys?"

**Two Hours Earlier, Peach Tree of Heavenly Wisdom**

"Come on, open already!" Po had been trying to open the scroll for about a half hour now. Originally, he had gotten up early to grab a bite to eat in the kitchen. He hadn't eaten much last night, what with Shifu ordering everyone to sleep before anyone had really had their dinner. Not finding much there, he decided to grab a peach before anyone woke up. As he was walking out of the room, he noticed the scroll on the counter, where Shifu had left it after trying again earlier.

"How did you get there? Nevermind, how would you know?" He stopped, silently berating himself. "Now I'm talking to the scroll, not awesome."

_When darkness falls..._

"What? Who's there? Mantis, not funny, dude." Franticly looking around, trying to find the culprit, his eyes rested on the scroll, still in the same spot. "Scroll? Are you talking to me?" Of course the scroll wasn't speaking, but Po didn't know that. His experience in prophecies was limited to what the Soothsayer has spoken of. And all she did was tell one.

Picking it up, he decided to take it with him on his way to the tree. "I must be going insane. Or insan_er_, if that's possible." After having made his way to the tree, he plucked a peach, and sat down, still staring at the scroll.

"When darkness falls... Obviously that's not good. What was the other part of that sentence? The guy in my dream said something else..." The wind blew by, brushing a few leaves off of the tree. Po shivered, it was colder than usual up here. A few of them floated in front of him, falling to his feet. His eyes followed them, severely bored. Right before they hit the ground, they rose-

"That's it! When darkness falls, a light must always rise!" _Pop._ Gazing down to the scroll, he saw the lock had undone itself.

**Present, Barracks**

"And that's what happened." The other looked at him, not quite believing his story. "What?" he asked, not getting their confusion.

"That's it, Po? You ate a peach and the lock magically opened?" said Crane, finally. Mantis walked up.

"Maybe the lock was hungry, too." Clearly not amused, Po shook his head.

"Ha ha, but that's what happened." Viper put her tail to her head in thought.

"Wait! Po, what did you say right before it opened, again?" She thought she might have been onto something.

"When darkness falls, a light must always rise. It's what the guy in my dream said. I think it was just about us being able to win, or something. Why?"

"No, don't you see? That _was_ the line! Not a physical one, a verbal quote!" She spoke, excitedly. She had figured it out, after all. "When you finished the quote, and the two halves met, it opened!" Nodding, the rest of them understood.

"Very good, Viper, but now we must focus on what is inside." Shifu gestured for Po to hand him the scroll, which he did. Reading silently, everyone saw him frown.

"Master? What does it say?" Shifu lowered it, a confused look creeping onto his face.

"Oh no, I know that look!" Po said, shifting uncomfortably. "Its a really bad one, isn't it?"

"For once, Po, I agree with you. This is, most definitely, a bad one. I can't make heads or tailes of this." Holding it out for them all to read, they arched their heads to see.

_The enemies amass,_

_Their power, is vast._

_But the deadliest of them all,_

_Sees the writing on the wall._

_Two masters, so different and the same,_

_Must band together to play the game._

_And a dark force comes,_

_The sound of war drums,_

_All of a nation will cry,_

_It becomes do, or die._

_But when the final bell tolls,_

_When light and dark have switched roles,_

_One calls checkmate,_

_And has decided his fate?_

"Ummm... What?" Po shrugged nervously. "That bit about the fate doesn't sound awesome."

"Shush, Po. One part at a time. Let's start with the beginning." Shifu trailed his finger along the lines, thinking to himself.

"At least it rhymes. Takes away a bit of the depressing, feeling, right?" Everyone glared at Po, who again backed off. "What? Prophecies rarely do that. Or so I'm told, anyway." Still a bit peeved, they turned back to the scroll.

"Actually, it seems mostly straightforward, up until the last part. Never heard of a prophecy having a question in it." Shifu nodded, in silent agreement.

"It seems the first part is merely a forewarning. Of an army, no less."

"At least we'll get help this time." said Monkey, earning a look of confusion from Po. Rolling his eyes, Monkey continued. "See the next bit? Someone changes sides."

"Oh. Right, yeah, I get it now." Shifu coughed, getting their attention again.

"I would also hazard that this 'master' would rank highly in the army. The 'deadliest of them all' would suggest great skill in combat. He could be very useful for knowing when and where the army will strike."

"But, where is he?" Now they all looked around, hoping one of them would know. "Po, you're sure there was nothing else in the dream?"

"Well, the guy was in a forest."

"Great. Anyone see a forest around here? You do? Oh, right, they're EVERYWHERE!" exclaimed Mantis. "How do we know where to look?" Shifu paused, remembering another of Oogway's warnings.

_ One often meets his destiny, on the road he takes to avoid it._ "Hmmm..." _Perhaps the same could be said vice versa? _"I believe we will meet him, soon enough. If we don't try to find him, he will find us. Prophecies never lie."

"So what do we do now, then? In the meantime, shouldn't we warn the people of what's coming?"

"Normally I'd agree, Viper. But to tell them of what? We have no information, other than war, and that will simply put them in a panic, not organize them." Shifu shook his head. "No, we can only hope that this master will find us before it's too late. That's all we can do. But for now, go to your training. We'll need to be ready." As they left to the training room, Shifu pondered something for a moment. "Po!"

Turning around, Po asked what was wrong.

"I have something to give you. Meet me in the Dragon Grotto." Watching Po fist pump, and talk excitedly with the Five about what it might be, Shifu sighed.

"I suppose he is ready." Still watching them leave, he saw Po trip onto his face as they left. "Or at least I hope he is."

**Well? Please have liked it! And please review, if you did! Or didn't. Constructive criticism is appreciated.**

**Oh, and that story about the OCs origins, I figure I should give you guys a 'by this time' date. _Should_ be in the next week. There will be more backstory in later chapters, but the story will reveal other things.  
Focusing on the other characters, I received a message, asking me when exactly the pairings will come into play. The Po and Tigress, not until almost the end. Im planning on a sequel, though. Im also considering my OC as having an interest. Still not sure who, though. It _will_ be a girl. That much I know for certain, lol. Ideas appreciated.**

**Dark Shade, signing off.**


	6. Unfortunate Circumstances

**First off, I am so so sorry! I actually had most of this done days ago, but I put it down for a second to take a break like an idiot, and got distracted. For this, I apologize. Also, on another note, 1000 views! I love you all! I didn't even know there was a country called Montenegro, but apparently somebody there likes my story, lol. Anyways, enough about me being stupid, time to respond!**

**Monkeycyborgninja: Thank you again! I'm really trying to keep this lighthearted and serious at the same time, and all of you guys' reviews seem to imply that I am succeeding! Yay!**

**Christ's Disciple: I already had a conversation with you about your idea, (which I Love) but I wanted to give you credit on this. Everybody! When you see the love interest for my OC, know that it was this guy's idea!**

**Kevin: I had actually read that story before, which was really depressing, since it got abandoned when it was getting really good. Don't worry, there is a lot of action coming, the climax certainly hasn't occurred yet. Plus, I'm planning a sequel, remember?**

**Finally, as per that comment I made about the OC origin story, I hit a small snag on the plot, but it should be resolved soon. Ideally, that is.**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OC, and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks. Boo hoo.**

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**Enemy Base Camp, NorthWest of China**

To say he was not happy, would be an understatement. He had just heard that his best assassin, codename Shade, had turned on his men and fled. _That stupid legate must have pissed him off. _His eyes widened. _Oh, shit. He found the messages, didn't he?_ While this was one man, it was the one man he didn't need fighting against him. The commander sighed. _This could be a problem._

"You there!" He gestured to one of the waiting soldiers outside his tent.

"Yes, sir?"

"Send word to our lord that his _pet_ has changed colors." Watching the soldier leave, he started to wonder how his lord may react. He turned back to his map, starting to believe extra precuations may be necessary. Hearing a garbled scream in the distance, he chuckled. _Oh, that's how._

**Three Miles North of the Valley of Peace**

He had been running for what seemed like an eternity now. He'd have to stop soon, or risk passing out. Looking up at the night sky, he thought about how long it would take to reach his destination. Probably less than an hour to get there, but he was tired. He squinted his eyes, and watched the road ahead of him. _A village._ Slowing his pace, he came to a stop in front of a tavern. Fully aware of the stares he was getting from the people around him, he walked inside. Making his way up to the pig behind the bar, he sat down and asked for a drink.

"Any particular kind?" The pig seemed nervous. His words were a bit shaky. Although, he wouldn't blame him. His attire was rather abnormal.

"Surprise me." _Heh, always wanted to say that._ Smirking, he decided to ask another question. "Any rooms available?"

"Y-yes. It's fifty yuan for the night, if you want one. However-" Glaring down at the pig, he motioned for him to continue. "However, I would ask that you remove your cloak, we try to avoid trouble around here. I'd like to know who you are before allowing you to stay a night."

_Impressive. Not many can keep their composure and ask a question like that to me. Of course, he doesn't know who I am. _Reaching up, he removed the hood on his cloak. Flinching slightly, the pig watched his face reveal itself.

As the hood fell back, the man was revealed to be a snow leopard. The dark yellow eyes looked the pig over, as he wondered how the pig would react.

"Are you satisfied?" Attempting to keep himself composed, the pig nodded furiously.

"We don't see many of your kind around here. In fact, the last one we saw was years ago, until he was locked in jail."

"I see..." _Well, that's interesting. Though not surprising. We do tend to keep to ourselves. But who is this other?_ "This snow leopard you saw, what was his name?"

"Oh, we don't normally talk about him. He had attacked the valley near here, you see. Quite a mess, he made. And then again, not two years ago he escaped and tried again. Of course, it was nothing the Dragon Warrior couldn't handle." The pig smiled in pride. "I met him once, you know. He saved our village from some wolves."

"Yes, yes. That's very good for you. But what was the leopard's name?"

"Oh, I apologize. I sometimes get off track." Leaning forward, and gesturing for Jin to do the same, he whispered,"His name was Tai Lung."

_Well, that's not helpful. What was I expecting? _"Thank you for the information, I'll be retiring for the evening. Fifty yuan, correct?" After the pig nodded, he handed him a small bag of coins, downed his drink, and headed up the stairs. The pig called up after him halfway.

"Will you be needing a wake up call?"

"No, thank you."

"Alright. Hey, I never got your name." Stopping at the top of the stairs, he turned and answered.

"It's Jin."

**Early Hours of the Morning, the Next Day**

"Not a bad night's sleep. Something must be wrong." Chuckling at his own joke, he got up, and went over to the closet provided in the room. Donning his cloak once more, he left for the center of the village. Reading a small map, he confirmed his route, and began what would hopefully be the last stretch of his journey. His ears perked up as he was leaving the town, and he sighed.

"I knew something was wrong."

_Thwack!_ An arrow whizzed by his face, lodging itself in the signpost next him. Not having flinched, he turned his head towards the source, and saw a small group of bandits standing not thirty feet from him. The largest of them, presumably the leader, stepped forward.

"Come on boys! This guy looks like he's got some unneeded merchandise." The wolves beside him snickered. A small crowd had formed nearby, watching, and waiting to see what would happen. A few of the villagers had sent a messenger for help. Jin could see the tavern owner among them. He was signaling to run.

_ As if._ Refocusing his attention on the wolves, he put a paw on the handle of his sword. "If you truly wish to test your mettle against me, do it quickly. I have things to do." The leader snarled at him, clearly not pleased with the answer.

"Well? One of you, get him!" He pushed one of the wolves toward the cloaked figure. Stumbling for a second, the wolf raised his spear, and charged.

It was over before anyone could register that Jin had moved. But he had indeed done so. Standing behind the wolf, watching the startled faces of the bandits in front of him, he slowly withdrew his blade from the bandit's side. Now they were frightened. Now, it was fun. Smiling from under his hood, he wondered what they would do next. _Run away? Too predictable. Perhaps stand and die? Honorable, but these are not honorable people._ It was then that all the wolves ran at him, spears and swords in hand._ Well, color me intrigued._ Slashing through the wolves, one by one with extreme precision, he finally reached the leader, who had trailed from behind the pack. Standing a small distance from him, he put his blade back in its sheath.

The wolf looked confused for a moment, then smiled and thrusted his sword at him. "That was a mistake you'll not live to regret, stranger!" Jin waited up until the wolf had reached him, then knocked the sword from his grasp and hit him over the head with the handle. Now on the ground, the leader tried to crawl away, only to have his back stepped on. Jin kneeled down, and whispered into the wolf's ear.

"You now have two options. Leave here with what little dignity you have left," The wolf growled from under him. Jin dug his foot deeper into his back, coaxing a whimper from him. "Or you can die. Simple as that." He took his foot off, and stepped back, allowing the wolf to get up.

"I-I'll leave. I swear, I'll never come back here again!" Watching the wolf run with his tail between his legs, he laughed and was about to leave, when a small duck child walked up to him. Cautiously walking towards him, the duck spoke.

"Thank you, stranger!" Looking down at him, he nodded and was about to leave again, when he heard a voice emanate from a distance behind him.

"What happened here?"

**The Jade Palace, Several Minutes Earlier**

They had just sat down to eat, and Po had begun handing out the food. Shifu was otherwise busy, off meditating in the Grotto.

_Flap flap._ Tigress' ears perked up. She looked around, but shook it off as just having been Crane.

"So, any more horrible prophetic dreams, Po?" Mantis asked. Po went to speak, but Monkey interrupted him.

"That was rhetorical! We do not want to hear the answer." Po shrugged, and continued eating his food.

_Flap flap._

"Quiet, everyone!" Tigress shushed them all, inciting a confused look from all at the table. "Can't you hear that?" They all strained their heads forward, trying to figure out what she was talking about. Po shook his head, and spoke up.

"I don't hear anything, Tigress. Maybe you're just-"

_Flap._ Now they all heard, and rushed outside, to find a goose had just landed in the courtyard.

"Oh, thank the gods! Please, you must help!"

"Calm down. What's happened?" The goose stopped for a moment, and took a deep breath.

"Our village is being raided by wolves!" He finally managed to speak. "And the last I saw, someone was trying to stop them!"

"They are foolish, then, and likely to get themselves killed!" Shifu dropped in, seemingly out of nowhere, startling Po in the process.

"How does he do that...," whispered Po. The others shushed him. Shifu, having ignored him, continued.

"No one in your village has any kind of formal training!"

"They were not from the village. A stranger, he was cloaked, so I can't give any more information than that. Apologies."

"Cloaked, you say? Quickly, you must hurry!" Gesturing towards the Five and Po, he urged them to begin making their way to the village. Having reached it, a few minutes later, they were greeted by the sight of several bloodied wolves on the ground, surrounding a figure in the village center. He had a blade at his side, that much they could tell. A small child had found its way to him. They all gasped, taking in the grisly scene in front of them. Viper finally found her voice.

"What happened here?" The figure turned towards them.

**Well? Please tell me you liked it! I absolutely love getting reviews! I've said it before, but it's like author crack! Constructive criticism, is as always, appreciated and encouraged. Also, feel free to make suggestions to add to the story. And review! Wait, I've said that, haven't I? Doesn't matter, review anyway!**


	7. With Friends Like These

**Hey everybody! I figured I owed you guys a fast update, after that debacle from the last one. So here it is! The heroes of our story finally meet! Yay! This is going great, I think. I had worried about hitting too many plot snags, like on that origin story,(which is almost resolved!), but I think I've found the flow of the story. Warning for this one though. There are bad words! Oh noes! Now, on to a couple of comment replies!  
**

**The Pizza Man: Thank you for the review. I absolutely loved the image of him, and thought it fit perfectly with my OC. I'm glad you agree.**

**Kevin: I did give you guys an image. In the chapter where I introduced him, I showed you how to find what he looked like. Google 'dark assassin' and he's the first image that pops up. He's holding a blade. That's it. And thank you for being honest. Also, thank you for loving my chapter. I try to give you guys the best possible story that I can manage.**

**Let's get on with it, then!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but my OC and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks. **

**:(**

* * *

**Village Center**

He turned around, and saw the Five and Po staring at him, jaws gaping. Remembering the bodies around him, he chuckled at their faces and took a step forward. The others immiediately took defensive stances.

"It's good that you found me. Saves me the trouble of looking for you." Tigress snarled.

"Why were you looking for us? You should know that we will not go down as easily as a pathetic pack of wolves." Jin cocked his head to the side, and then nodded in understanding.

"No, no you misunderstand my reason for being here." He began walking towards them again, and stopped when they all readied themselves. "Please, you must list-"

"We don't have to listen to anything you have to say, murderer!" Viper yelled in disgust. Po watched on as they began arguing back and forth with one another. He decided to step in before it got worse.

"Hey!" They all looked at him. "Don't you guys realize that he was fighting bad guys? While his _methods,_" At this he peered at Jin out of the corner of his eye, "Were certainly extreme, he's gotta be on our side, right?" Jin nodded.

"Thank you, panda."

"It's Po, and no problem."

"Yes, well Po, you are correct in your assumption of my allegiances. However I come with ill tidings. I am here to inform you of an upcoming threat." Mantis butted in.

"If you're talking about the army, yeah, we know." Jin raised his brow at this.

"Excuse me? How could you possibly know of the attack?" They all gestured towards Po, who shrugged.

"I sorta had this dream, you see. I think you were actually in it. Anyway, it eventually led to this prophecy, which in some vague detail, told us about it." Jin grumbled under his breath.

"What was that?"

"I hate prophecies." They heard a roar, and gazed over at Tigress, who was fuming.

"I don't know if any of you noticed this, but this guy just murdered a dozen people! And you're all talking like you've known each other for years! Ally or not, enemies or not, he committed a horrible crime!" Jin raised his paw in protest.

"I admit my actions were unnecessary. Recent events have had me doing such things, and as bad as it sounds, I may have gotten used to it." Tigress' eyes widened, and narrowed again in rage. "I know, that's no excuse, but I wish to make amends by helping you."

"You dare think you can be redeemed? You just admitted to having done this kind of thing before, and you have the nerve to believe in something like that?!" Jin looked down, but picked his head up after a few seconds.

"I do." That was the last straw. Tigress charged at him, claws unsheathed, on all fours. Jin just stood there, waiting for her to advance. As she reached him, he sidestepped with ease and elbowed into her back, knocking her into the ground. He jumped back a few feet, to distance himself.

"Please, I do not wish to fight you." Tigress got up, glaring at him all the while. "Please believe me. If you truly wish me to be punished, when this has all ended, you can choose what you feel is appropriate." Now, her eyes widened again, but this time, it was not in rage, but in surprise.

"What?"

"You heard me correctly. When we are finished dealing with the threat, you may do as you see fit." She stared at him for another few seconds, before turning around and walking back towards the others.

"Fine then. Come with us back to the palace. From there, Shifu will decide how to continue forward." She turned her head. "And if you ever go back on your word, an army will be the least of your worries." They all watched her trek back towards the valley, and Jin shook his head.

"Is she always like that?"

"Not usually. Anymore, at least. I haven't seen her so angry in a long time." Viper replied. Monkey walked up beside him.

"Yeah, dude. You're gonna have to watch your back. Nice to meet you, by the way. I'm Monkey, that's Viper, Mantis, Crane, and you already know that the bodacious panda over there is Po." They all nodded and exchanged hellos as their names were said. Jin tilted his head to the side, and stared with a slightly confused look. Mantis hopped up on Monkey's shoulder.

"We know. They're not our real names, but we use them as Masters to keep it simple." Jin nodded, and then decided to return the favor of a name.

"You can call me Jin."

"If you're all done getting _acquainted,_ I suggest we move on. Shifu will be waiting." Yelled Tigress, from her spot near the edge of the village.

**On the Palace Steps**

"So you were a mercenary?" Asked Mantis.

"Yes."

"So I'm guessing you've killed a lot of people."

"No. My previous jobs were almost always reconaissance and intel type missions. I tried to avoid killing, if at all possible," Tigress grumbled at this. "Is something funny?"

"You definitely looked like you were trying to avoid killing those wolves back there." Jin stopped his ascent up the stairs, and lowered his head.

"My actions were... regrettable. I sincerely hope I can gain your trust of me someday."

"That doesn't seem likely. And remember, when this is over, you won't _see_ another day." Jin continued walking back up, unperturbed. "You don't seem worried."

"If I must die for my mistakes, but had the chance to save so many before the fact, then I will die with a clear conscience. Something I had not considered possible for many years." Now _they _all stopped, watching him as he continued forward. Tigress paused, considering what to say.

"Perhaps I misjudged you. But don't get your hopes up." They reached the top, and found Shifu waiting.

"Students! I see you have brought a guest. I am relieved to see that my trust in Oogway's words was not misplaced." They stood in front of Shifu, with the exception of Jin. He walked forward and introduced himself. "Yes, I am pleased to meet you as well, Jin. Now, I believe certain things must be discussed. Perhaps over breakfast?" Po's eyes lit up, and he immiediately started towards the kitchen.

"Sweet! We never got to finish before! I'll get started on preparing it again." He stopped, and turned at the group. "Jin, you good with peach porridge?" Jin nodded, and Po walked off. Shifu called after him. "Yes, master?"

"Did you forget something last night, Po?"

"Is this a trick question? I don't like those." Shifu shook his head, clearly annoyed.

"Let me give you a hint. The grotto?" Po's eyes widened, and he started blabbering.

"Oh! I-I am so sorry, master Shifu! We had started talking, and I challenged Tigress to a spar, and I got off track-" Shifu held up his hand, motioning for him to stop. Po twiddled his paws together, nervously.

"It's alright Po. Please do not forget tonight as well." After wholeheartedly agreeing, Po walked off into the kitchen. Jin chuckled at his antics.

"He seems like a fun guy."

"You have no idea."

**The Kitchen, a Few Minutes Later**

They had all sat down at the table, waiting for Po to finish. There was an uncomofrtable silence, as they all tried not to stare under his hood. Shifu decided to break it.

"So Jin, if you would please?" He gestured towards the cloak, and Jin nodded.

"My apologies. I very rarely take it off, and even more rarely converse with others in such close proximity." He pulled back the hood, and they all gasped. Shifu stared silently.

"You're- you're a snow leopard!" Crane managed to get out.

"Yes, and you're a bird."

"No, it's just that-" Tigress interrupted him halfway through the sentence.

"It's just that we've only ever seen a few of your kind before." She looked at Shifu, who was still trying to grasp the situation. "And you bear a striking resemblance to one that had given us some trouble."

"Ah yes. This Tai Lung?"

"You knew him?"

"No, but I had heard of him at that village from before. He tried to take over the valley, yes?"

"It was a bit more than that." They all looked at Shifu, who had begun to speak. "He was my adopted son." Jin laughed, and they all glared at him. He stopped, and looked bewildered.

"Wait, you're serious? I'm sorry, it's just that such a thing would have been shunned back in my home nation. My people are very proud, and do not associate themselves with others unless absolutely necessary." Tigress snarled.

"So I guess this counts as necessary?"

"Of course, but I do not hold such beliefs. I may be proud of my heritage, but they take it much too far. I am not as conceited as others." Po set the food down on the table, and wanted to put in his two cents.

"Well, that's great!" They all looked at him. "You know, not being an, umm..."

"Ass?" Tigress offered.

"Let's try not to use such language at the table, Tigress." Shifu countered. Jin spoke up.

"It's alright, Shifu. The word fits as a description for many back home." He took a spoonful of his food, and swallowed fast. "This is delicious!"

"Thanks, I appreciate it." Po replied.

"On to business. What position did you hold during your stay in this army?" Shifu asked.

"I was usually sent on recon. But I discovered recently that the few missions that were not such, were the main reason for my position. I thought I was simply there for gathering intelligence on the enemy." He shook his head. "But I was being used. At some point in the higher up chain, I guess I was known as their master assassin."

"So you wouldn't have anything on their plans? There positions?"

"No, I'm afraid not. I was trusted with very little, never wondered why. Never thought to ask."

"Well, I won't lie. That is disappointing. I was sure the prophecy meant that you could help on such matters."

"Speaking of which, what prophecy?" Shifu handed him the scroll, which had been left in the kitchen again. Jin looked at it, and a frown grew on his face. He mumbled something, and put it down.

"What was that?"

"I hate riddles."

**Well, another chapter done. I tried to get this one to be as long as I could, without being dragged. Please review! I really appreciate it! It only takes like five seconds! Please? And feel free to give constructive criticism. Any story ideas I like will also be used if I can. Maybe even in the sequel! So even if an idea might not work here, you can still give it to me, and I can work it into the next one! I'm already working on the plot to the next story, but it's still sparse enough to be able to get some stuff in there.**


	8. Differences Aside

**Hello, all! Now, I'll tell you right here. This chapter, as you might have noticed, is much shorter. However! This is only because I felt like something was missing as I was going over the next one. I thought something need to go in between. So I wrote this, as a buffer into the next one. All that means, though, is that the next one is just about ready! I'm just making some minor adjustments to get it seeming right. I don't want to half-ass anything. If it doesn't feel good, I won't publish it. I'll also apologize if you feel Tigress was a bit OOC here, but I hope I got her right. Truth be told, I didn't think I'd get any work done today. You have no idea how tiring being in the Macy's parade is. I'm gonna be sore for days. Anyway, a few comment replies!**

**The Pizza Man: I really hope you do join the site! It's definitely worth it. I also know how it feels to be replied to. Remember how I said in the beginning that I've been reading and reviewing for over a year now? The few times, I got feedback, it felt, as a certain panda might say, awesome! But yeah, please do send me a PM when you join.**

**Kevin: You guessed it, there will be a character to help fill in some of the blanks for readers. But you've already met him! The Commander will be popping up from time to time, for just that. There is another character, who has been mentioned, but he's for something else entirely.**

**Christ's Disciple: Thank you for liking it! Sadly this is all you'll get until the next one, but hopefully that'll be out in a day or two. It's pretty much finished, but like I said, I want to get it perfect. I hope you can wait for that!**

**On another note, the OC backstory plot snag has been resolved! It will be out shortly after the next chapter of this story. For anyone who was excited to read it, which was probably like 2 people, this is good news! Yay.**

**Sorry, I babble. On to the disappointingly short chapter!**

**I own only my OC. Everything else is DreamWorks.**

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**That Night, On The Roof**

Jin was sitting, his paws around his knees. Every few seconds, he'd look up at the stars, and then look back down at the valley. Some of the last lights were being extinguished in the village. He sighed, and put a paw on the hilt of his blade.

"You're the only friend I've had, and kept. At least I know you won't give up on me."

"Talking to swords, now, are we?" Jin jumped, and turned around, only to find Tigress behind him. "Settle down. I wasn't spying on you. I come up here sometimes, to think." He sat back down, and continued gazing at the valley. She joined him, and it was quiet for a few minutes.

"..." Tigress turned to look at him.

"What was that?"

"I wasn't worried about you spying on me."

"Oh. Then what got you so excited?"

"No one's been able to sneak up on me in years. I must be losing my touch."

"So it must not be my skill, it must be the lack in yours?" Jin looked back, with a crooked smile.

"Something like that." He laughed, and caught the ghost of a smile on her face.

"I'm sorry I got so upset at you earlier. The others tell me I need to relax sometimes." Jin shook his head.

"No, you had every right." He looked back up at the stars, and Tigress followed his sight up to the sky. "Sometimes, I stare at them, and see all the beauty they have to offer. The wonders they represent." He stopped, and buried his head under his arms. "Sometimes, they remind me of what I represent. Fear." Tigress put her paw on his shoulder, but he shook it off.

"I won't pretend to know exactly how you feel." Tigress began, earning a look from Jin. "But I can guess. You feel like a monster, correct?" Surprise showed in Jin's eyes, and he shut them quickly. "You shouldn't."

"What?"

"You shouldn't feel like that. For the longest time, I felt the same way. Sometimes, I'd look at the stars much as you were just before. That's how I recognized it." She put her paw back on his shoulder, but this time, he didn't shake it off. "But I was turned from that path. I had help, sure. But it's _you_ that needs to make that last decision." She stood up, and started her way down the roof. Just before she leapt off, she said one last thing.

"_You _left that path and came to help. _You_ decided to turn from what you'd known your whole life. No monster did that. Good night." And with that, she jumped off, leaving Jin to nothing but the stars, and his thoughts. Which seemed much brighter at the moment.

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**Awwww! ****Wonderfully sappy stuff! Blech. But yeah, I thought this would go well in between chapters. For anyone who had, ahem, _thoughts,_ Jin will not hook up with Tigress. I had somebody read this before now, and he asked if that was what I was hinting towards. If any of you thought the same, then no. However, he also asked me to do it, so if any of you like that idea, I might make an AU of this story, with that instead. Are you happy now, dude? (Referring to him)**

**Also, on another note, I would like to make it clear that Jin is not some all-powerful sword master. He's good, but not a godly awe-inspiring master of all. I don't like it when somebody makes their OC too powerful, so I won't do that here. If you need a visual, then here. Po vs. Jin, weapons allowed. Jin wins, as he is highly trained in such. Without weapons, Jin loses. He can fight without one, but not to the level of Po. Glad to get that out. **

**Please review if you liked it, and still do if you didn't! Your feedback can help me be better. Ideas and suggestions always appreciated.**


	9. A Terrified Snow Leopard

**Okay, so how about this: Every time I give you guys a date for when something will be updated, you expect it the next day. That might work better, heh. Thankfully, the origin story is making good progress, and should be done soon. I wanted to have it all completed before posting the chapters, so that I can focus on just this story, and simply update that every few days until its all out. Is that a good idea? Of course, it also means I have no excuse for not updating... Oh well. Cross that bridge when we come to it. A few comment replies!**

**Guest: I'm glad you liked it. But if I did an AU, it'd be in another story. I was never implying that I would change this one. This will continue to be Po/Tigress. I love the pairing, so yeah. And if it was Coca-Cola, I completely understand. I'm so freakin' addicted, lol.**

**The Pizza Man: Thank you for your input. As it so happens, I got a fair share of messages asking me not to do the AU, much to the disappointment of my friend. But oh well.**

**Christ's Disciple: I'm sorry I'm making you guys wait so much. I am really bad at keeping track of the days going by. Also, Skyrim. Lots and lots of Skyrim.**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OC, the rest is DreamWorks. I own _them_! No, not really.**

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**Jade Palace Barracks, The Next Morning**

_Gong!_ As usual, the Five, and interestingly Po, were at their doors in a matter of seconds. Shifu looked over them all, pleasantly surprised to see Po, but then frowned.

"What is it, Master?" Po asked. "I even made it on time today." Shifu shook his head.

"Yes, but our guest is missing." They all looked for him at his room door, and then realized something.

"We never gave him a room last night!" Viper exclaimed. "Who was the last one to see him?" Tigress spoke up.

"It was probably me." They all stared at her. Monkey raised his hand. "Yes?"

"Why did you go to see him?" Viper slithered over, interrupting Monkey.

"You weren't being hard on him again, were you?"

"No. I helped him with something." The others had some doubt, and it showed, but they gave it up for now.

"So where was he when you last saw him?"

"On the roo-..." She started towards the door. "He didn't."

They all followed her outside, until she stopped a few feet from the barracks. She looked up, and smirked. When they all looked up as well, sure enough, there was Jin, relaxing on top with a cup of tea in one hand, the other steadying himself. His hood and cloak were at his side, revealing his face as he stared up at the sky. He noticed them, and jumped down, grabbing his clothes on the way. Landing, with the cup still perfectly balanced in his hand, he cocked his head to the side, confused as to their looks.

"Is there something on my face?" They all started to babble, not really making any sense. Excluding Tigress and Shifu, who just shook their heads in tandem. Finally, having had enough, Shifu put up his hand, stopping their incessant chattering. He then proceeded to explain.

"They are simply confused. Where did you sleep last night, Jin?"

"On the roof. Why?" Viper immiediately grew an apologetic look on her face.

"We are so sorry for not having given you a room. I guess we forgot, in all the excitement."

"It's quite alright. I've slept in worse, believe me. Besides, I bet my room had a much better view than yours." He replied, a smile growing on his face. He noticed Shifu staring at his cup. "Shifu? Is there a problem with my tea?"

"I don't suppose you got that from the top cupboard in the kitchen." All of their faces darkened, and Po looked very worried. Jin, however, simply responded with a yes.

"_Shifu's private stash of ginseng. Oh no..."_ Po whispered, to nobody in particular. Though they all heard him, Jin included. Whose eyes darted from his cup, to Shifu very quickly.

"Uhhh... I can pay for that?" Shifu shook his head, and told everyone to meet him at morning training in five minutes. After he left, a weight seemed to have been lifted off of them. Mantis jumped up on Jin's shoulder.

"Man, you really dodged a cannonball on that one."

"I thought for sure he was going to eviscerate you! The last time Po had some, Shifu made him go up and down the stairs ten times!" Crane said. Jin cocked his head to the side.

"Well that's not that bad of a punishme-" He looked over at Po, and gazed up and down. "Nevermind." Po grew a look that said, 'I am not amused', and started walking towards the training hall. Tigress, however, took more offense than that, and glared at Jin. Noticing this, he asked what was wrong.

"Don't you think it's rather rude to be making jokes at the expense of the guy who defended you yesterday?"

"But it was funny." Jin countered. Tigress growled, and followed Po. Mantis whispered something in Jin's ear. "Oh, I see. He is your mate?" Time stopped. No, it seriously might as well have. Tigress slowly turned on her heels, giving Jin a look that could topple mountains. The rest of the group shuddered, and backed up a step or two.

"I suggest-and you would want to listen to this advice- that you keep your comments to yourself. Am I clear?" Jin nodded vigorously, and she headed inside. They all exhaled a breath they hadn't realized they'd been holding in. Jin chuckled.

"I haven't been that terrified in years." He laughed out loud, with the rest of them staring at him in disbelief.

**Training Hall, A Few Minutes Later**

"Well, I suppose we can start with learning your skill level." Mantis snickered over in the corner, whispering something to Po that sounded mysteriously like 'zero'. Po didn't seem amused at that, either. Jin got the feeling Mantis wasn't making fun of him, right now. It looked like Po took the brunt of the jokes around here.

"How would you ascertain that, Master?" Jin inquired, looking over to the course.

"I won't bother with the training course, I am sure you can handle it well enough, and it is really meant more for improving speed and agility. No, for you, I will have my students spar until I have a better sense of your limits." Jin chuckled. "Is something funny?"

"Good luck finding one." Shifu smirked, and snapped his fingers. Mantis and Monkey burst into action, attempting to take Jin off guard. Throwing his blade over to the wall, where it stuck in the wood,(He guessed weapons would not be allowed here) he blocked an incoming punch from Monkey, and kicked Mantis over to the side. Grabbing Monkey's arm, he twisted himself around and flung him across the room. Shifu looked mildly impressed, and then snapped his fingers again.

This time, Crane and Viper jumped in. Crane flew in from atop, and while Jin focused on him, Viper snuck through his defenses and tripped his leg up. Shifting his weight, Jin balanced and tornado kicked Viper, whipping her into Crane, and sending them both flying. Shifu again snapped his fingers, and Tigress calmly walked up, cracking her neck, with Po close behind. Remembering the scene from just a few minutes ago, Jin took his stance.

"Give me everything you've got."

"Happy to." Tigress replied. "Ready, Po?" He danced around on his feet a bit, clearly excited.

"Oh, I was born ready!"

_A Few Minutes Later_

Jin sat on the floor, panting from the exhaustion that had set in. He rested his arms on his knees, and smiled up at the group.

"Well, you can certainly fight, I'll give you that." He rubbed at a bruise on his arm. "That's gonna smart." Po whooped in victory, and held his hand out to Tigress, looking for a high five. She looked at it, not quite sure. Hesitantly, she obliged, sending Po into another frenzy. She smiled at his antics, then looked over at Jin. Shifu walked up to them, and looked pleased.

"Jin, you have shown excellence in your skill as a fighter, however you seemed slightly off. Is there a reason?"

"I very rarely am without Iragetsu." They raised their brows, clearly not understanding. "My blade. That's it's name. I _trained_ as a swordmaster most of my life, so I have no formal training without one." Nodding, Shifu said that they would take a reprieve for breakfast. Tigress looked at him oddly as they were leaving. Catching this, Jin mouthed 'what' at her. She shook it off, and kept walking.

_I wonder if the others caught that tone he made. He's hiding something about his past._ She decided to bring it up later, perhaps tonight on the roof again, if she caught him there.

**Well, another filler chapter. I think I've actually got a good idea for when I've become stuck. I'll have scenes like the roof chapter every once in a while to break the chapters up. It'll give me a chance to go over all the stuff that's happened in the previous chapters. Also, I'm wondering if I should maybe change this to adventure and humor, haha. The romance wont really come until the end of this story, going into the sequel. That story will live up to the romance genre, I promise you. **

**Anyways, Please leave a comment and review!**


	10. Topics To Be Avoided

**I have no good excuses, or reasons for my absence. I'm a procrastinating idiot, plain and simple. And to make you wait for _this_, I am really sorry. The next chapter is almost done as well, and it's much longer. Again, I'm so sorry. I hope you can forgive me. A few comment replies, and then right to the story.**

**The Pizza Man: To answer your question, David265 is most certainly going to be updating. I asked him, and he replied. He's just had a bit of trouble lately, he might give more of a reason why in his update. I'm not at liberty to disclose why, it's his life. But he is still here.**

**Simba593: Thank you! I love your stories. Unfortunately, the romance won't really flourish until the end, but there will be hints every now and then.**

**Kevin: As usual, thank you for the review. I feel like the comedy is needed to break up the seriousness.**

**Christ's Disciple: I know, right? I couldn't keep a straight face while writing it, lol. Imagining her face... that's really scary lol.**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OC, the rest is DreamWorks.**

**The Kitchen, A Few Minutes Later**

"So you named your sword, huh?" Jin paused in his breakfast, not taking his eyes off the bowl in front of him. He coughed a bit, unofrtunately gaining the others attention. Thankfully, Shifu had left to go meditate.

_Well, if there was a chance not to answer that, its gone now._ He looked up at Monkey, who had asked the question. _I suppose I should answer with nothing but the truth. _He sighed, and then mentally resigned himself to not being able to withhold certain information anymore.

"More like renamed, actually." He finally answered. "I had decided that it's original name, which had not been given by me, no longer fit the blade's personality." A few raised brows told him all he needed to know about their next question.

"What do you mean?" Po asked.

"Ever since I crafted Iragetsu, I had imagined it had one, much like you or me would. To personalize myself with it, make it more comfortable to use." Jin looked back down at his food. "Again, Po, the food is excellent."

"Oh no you don't." Po quickly countered. "You're not dodging this one."

...

_Damn._

"Why the need to make it more comfortable?" This time, Tigress asked the question. "That sounds almost child-like."

"That's because I was a child. I began my training at around six years old."

"Six?! Your master gave you a dangerous weapon like that at six?"

"No." Tigress relaxed a bit. "He made me forge it myself." All eyes went to the blade, sitting at Jin's side.

"You crafted that when you were six?" Jin nodded. "Wow. That's... impressive." Po said. "But, if you crafted it, who gave it the first name?"

"That would be my master. He was also impressed. He had helped guide me along its crafting, but I suppose he expected to have to have me do it several times before it was done correctly." Jin chuckled. "He didn't know that I had already been reading about the crafting of swords. I was facinated by the subject."

"That's pretty cool. When I was that age, the most impressive thing I ever did was eat some furniture." Po replied., with a smile on his face. He then grew an inquisitive look.

_Here it comes. _Jin braced himself.

"What name did he give it?" A chorus of 'yeah' erupted from the table.

_Alright, well, that's not so bad. But I can't expect to keep it from them forever._ He looked around, studying their faces. When he got to Tigress, he winced. _She's going to ask the right question, isn't she?_

"My master gave it a less than endearing name. Darkbringer."

"Well, that's kinda cool." Po was the first to say something. "It's awesome, in a kind of evil way."

"That's probably what he was going for." He muttered under his breath. Noticing their looks, he decided to try to derail the conversation once last time. "What are your plans for defending China? In the war, I mean." They all stopped looking at him, and began discussing several options.

_Success._ He looked at them all, only half-listening to their ideas. He then noticed something else. Tigress was still looking at him._ How does she see right through me like that? _He silently begged her not to go further with the topic. It must have shown, because she nodded. _Oh, thank you, gods._ She then mouthed 'roof'." He sighed.

_The gods must know I'm an atheist._ He chuckled at his own dry humor, and began to really pay attention to the conversation.

**Several Minutes Later**

They had resolved their dilemna. Sort of. There were two good ideas, both they would discuss with Shifu later.

"You know, he probably already came up with a solution. He's good at that kind of thing." Po mentioned, on their way back to the training room.

"Doesn't mean he wouldn't like to hear our ideas, Po." Tigress replied. Mantis jumped up onto Po's shoulder.

"I still can't believe that it was Po that came up with one of the good ideas." He nudged Po's head. "Who woulda guessed you're good at strategy, huh Po?" Tigress swatted him off.

"Po was probably always good at it. None of you gave him a chance to try." She exclaimed. Po looked over, and gave his thanks. Of course, Mantis was having none of it.

"If anyone here wasn't letting him express himself at first, _Tigress_, it was you." She winced at Mantis' comment, only slightly, but enough for Jin and Po to notice. Jin decided to end it, saving Po from what was most likely going to be another embarassing moment, had he said something.

"If you want a chance to express _anything_ for the next couple of days, Mantis, please refrain from speaking again." Mantis backed off, rejoining Monkey.

They had reached the training room, and as expected, Shifu was waiting there for them.

"I trust you all had a good breakfast?"

"Well, Po cooked, didn't he?" A few chuckles, a blush, and then they walked in.

**Next chapter will be a bit more exciting. We'll find out what Shifu talked with Po about at the grotto. Again, I'm sorry for my lateness, and for only being able to publish this little bit. Now I feel like I really owe you guys, so I'm gonna make the next chapter the longest I can. Also, Chapter 10! (Counting the prologue) And, just about 3K views! I'm sure this chapter will break it. I love you all!**

**Oh, and by the way, how did you guys like the fight scenes before? I'm sorry I cheaped out on the Po and Tigress vs. Jin, but I want to have my style down first before writing an epic fight like that, lol.**

**As per the norm, please review and constructive criticism is always appreciated.**


	11. Inner Peace, Inner Demons

**I thought I owed you guys a fast update. Whether or not you guys think a week delay is okay, I don't and I want to make sure I get these out. I decided to throw this in, before the next chapter,(which will be a roof one) I hope you like it. Something felt off about it, but I couldn't find anything wrong, so if you guys see something please tell me. There won't be many comment replies, since this came out so soon, but I'm fine with that.**

**Christ's Disciple: First of all, you may smack me. The rest of you won't understand why, but he does. Second, I answered your question by message already, but I wanted the answer out where others could see it too. His master is not a canon character, but has been briefly mentioned.**

**The Pizza Man: Thank you for the compliment, and for your concern. However, if somebody was truly offended, I'd ask that they contact me by PM. And I see no reason why anyone would be. Am I offended that some people do have religion? Nope. But thank you for the concern nonetheless. I can only hope this doesn't affect my readers. Besides, if the guy named Christ's Disciple didn't say anything, I think I'm set, lol.**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OC, the rest is DreamWorks.**

**A/N: This is the revised and edited version of this chapter. This was rewritten as of February 1st 2013. I eliminated the 'absolute offense' plot twist as informed, and wrote a bit extra as recompense. I apologize again to any who liked the idea.**

* * *

**Training Hall**

Jin's POV

Shifu had left them to work amongst themselves, having gone to meditate on how to proceed with the defense of China. He had listened to their ideas, but the group could only hope he'd make the right choice. While they were conversing, though, Jin had noticed one of them was silent. Tigress had not spoken the entire time.

She must be upset over what Mantis said. Jin thought to himself. I don't know what happened with them before I arrived, but it seems she wasn't always this... agreeable. He chuckled, and decided to bring it up with her later. If they were going to talk, at least now he'll have something to bring to the table, so to speak. He caught her eye, and mouthed 'roof' right back to her. She immediately straightened up, and Jin figured she was going to act normally again. In the meantime, the others were pestering Po about what Shifu had spoken to him about.

"Come on, Po! You gotta tell us what he taught you!" Monkey said. Po shook his head.

"How do you know he was teaching me something? Maybe he just wanted to have lunch with me." They just stared at him for a few seconds, only for the silence to be broken by boisterous laughter, courtesy of Mantis and Monkey.

"Seriously, man?" Mantis wiped a tear out of his eye. "Is that the best you got?"

"Po, why won't you tell us?" They turned to find the source of the question, and surprisingly they found Tigress. "Did he ask you not to show us?"

"Well... No, but... It isn't really interesting, it's not exciting, or anything." Po replied. Tigress casually walked over, passing by Jin on the way, who was quick to notice a mischievous smirk growing on her face. The rest didn't seem to see it.

This might not end well for the panda. But at least she isn't moping anymore. Jin watched with increasing interest as she reached Po, beginning to circle him..

"Then why not show us? I'm sure you'd love to..." At that point, she was behind Po, where the rest of the group couldn't see, and trailed a paw along his back. Po visibly stiffened.

Thank god the others didn't see me do that. I'd never live it down. Tigress thought as she came around in front again. They probably think I just circled him, for intimidation. And for all intents and purposes, I did just that.

"Alr-alright, Ti-Tigress." Po began to stumble over his words. His mind was racing with about a million different thoughts, most of them involving something along the lines of 'What the hell was that?!' He resigned to having to show them. He couldn't remember Shifu telling him not to, but he couldn't help but feel that this was somehow going to get him into trouble, and that he was forgetting something.

"I'll need you guys to back up a little bit, I need to concentrate." They all did as he said, and Po moved to the center of the floor. He took a stance, which all but Jin recognized.

Flashback, Po's Meeting With Shifu

"So what is it you wanted to talk to me about?" Po asked, eager to learn something new. Shifu saw this in Po's face, and mentally laughed.

He may be the clumsiest, giddiest warrior I have ever seen. But he has a heart of gold.

"Po, today I am going to instruct you on a new form of meditation."

Po groaned, and seeing this Shifu gave a small laugh, prompting Po to look back at his master.

"Master Shifu?"

"Do not fear, Dragon Warrior. I trust that you will enjoy this exercise." He stated, and Po began to grow excited again, but much more cautious this time around.

"So, what exactly are we doing, then? No offense, but how is meditation going to be exciting?" Po asked, his head cocked to one side.

"You will be using your inner peace to attain a higher level of concentration. Hopefully, in this higher state of thinking you will be able to better understand a situation." Shifu explained, noting how Po's eyes lit up at the mention of inner peace.

"Situation... Like the one we're in right now? With the war, I mean."

"Precisely. That is the main reason I am teaching you this now. I am hoping you will be more apt to handle yourself in battle or otherwise with this technique."

"Otherwise? How would this help in another situation?"

"Inner peace was not born out of a need for battle, Po." Shifu sighed, when he had originally told Po of inner peace, he had unfortunately not been able to describe it in much detail. "Quite the opposite is true. It was intended to master one's chi and harness true potential. This form of meditation will simply further that."

"Cool. So, how do we start?"

"How any form of meditation begins. Close your eyes."

Po did as he said, beginning to look for that peace he had found some time ago. He could still hear Shifu speaking, though, and tried to pay attention.

"You must focus on your goal. Empty your mind, it should not be difficult."

Po opened his eyes, to find his master sitting in lotus position, eyes closed, and a definitive smirk adorning his features.

"Did... Did you just make a funny?" Po's face was priceless, his mouth agape.

"I assure you, I have no idea what you're talking about. Concentrate, Po."

**End Flashback**

"There you go."

"But... All you did was sit there after performing the inner peace stance!" Mantis exclaimed, his contempt for the large bear was growing.

"Yep. Shifu showed me a new form of meditation. It's supposed to help me with concentration, and something about dealing with situations better." Po calmly said, taking a small amount of delight in the frustration he had caused in some of them.

"Well, there goes five minutes of my precious time." Monkey said, starting to walk away.

"Like you had anything better to do, anyway." Tigress sarcastically replied, rolling her eyes.

"What is this 'inner peace'?" Jin asked, he had actual curiousity. He had never seen it before, and the others did seem impressed at first with the mentioning of it.

"Oh, right. You weren't there for that. It's basically when your mind is at ease, and you master your chi and true potential." Po said, for once seeming almost stoic in his answer.

"Wow, Po. That was almost deep." Crane said, a bit surprised.

"Shifu said it." Po responded, looking a bit sheepish.

"That explains that, then."

"How does one achieve such a state?" Jin inquired, ignoring the comment.

"It involves being at peace with both your past and present, setting your mind at ease, that sort of thing."

"Oh." Jin's eyes were cast downward. "Nevermind."

They all looked a bit apologetic, knowing the basics of his past, but Tigress knew the real reason Jin became so immediately forlorn.

"Hey, don't worry." Po tried to comfort him a bit. "I'm sure you could do it, I could teach you." He went to put his paw on Jin's shoulder, but a quick, cold glare stopped him in his tracks. Jin's face softened afterwards, though.

"Sorry about that. Force of habit. I would love if you would teach me sometime."

"No problem. What are friends for, right?" Po said cheerfully, as they all started their respective training again.

"Yeah, what are friends for..." Jin left it at that, and his eyes darkened in thought.

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**And there we are. Another chapter finished. Please tell me how you liked it, if at all. Reviews and constructive criticism are appreciated as always.**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	12. Uncovered Truths and Mischief

**Yay! The first chapter I've written where my fingers weren't feeling suicidal afterwards! The new laptop is making this much easier on me. And here is another roof chapter! Things are revealed here, and Jin's basic origin story is spelled out in lament's terms. The actual one is still being worked on. And for the purpose of this chapter and story, Jin is about 25. And a big surprise at the end! Now, a couple of comment replies!**

**Simba593: I know! That part was just too fun to write.**

**Christ's Disciple: I hope another chapter out so soon makes up for my idiocy. And thank you for the compliment.**

**Now, on to the story!**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OC, the rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Barracks, Later That Night**

Jin was walking back for the night, after having gone out for a quick snack. As he approached, he noticed a silhouette on top of the roof. Grinning, he jumped up and landed beside the shadow.

"You certainly know how to make an entrance." Tigress said, not even flinching from his abrupt arrival. Her gaze stayed fixed on the valley below her. The moon was providing Jin with just enough light to make out her face, making her look all the more pensive.

"What can I say, I'm a sucker for the dramatic." He replied, sitting down next to her. "So, what can I do for you tonight?"

"You say that as if you don't already know, and why do I have to have a reason to be on the roof?"

"Well, it _is_ my room, remember?" Jin chuckled, and saw the tiniest hint of a smile tug at Tigress' lips. _Progress._ Jin thought.

"That's true. But I think we need to get to more important topics."

Jin's smile faltered, if only for a second. Tigress knew this was going to be a sensitive subject, but she also knew how repressing feelings could hurt.

_For a lifestyle such as his, there must be a reason._ She decided to end the tension.

"What happened to you?" Jin lowered his head, sighed, and looked back up at the sky.

"More years ago than I'm able to remember, there was a boy. He lived a happy enough life with his family, his friends, got into trouble at school, all you'd expect from an average kid." Jin's eyes twitched a bit. "But he wasn't an average kid. He was pretty smart, and thought he was much smarter. He expressed interest in all the wrong areas. And someone found him."

**Flashback, Nineteen Years Ago**

"So what kind of school is this, anyway?" The young boy asked, twisting his head in all directions, trying to see as much as he could.

"It's a specialty school, for ones as gifted as you are." The older man walking next to him led him into a room, filled with training equipment. "You see, Jin, I have followed your progress in school since the incident last year."

**Present Time**

"Incident? What happened then?" Tigress asked, interrupting his story.

"I had gotten a hold of my father's sword, out from it's cabinet. Like the idiot child I was, I brought it to school to show everyone. When the teacher tried to take it from me, I had almost cut her arm off."

"Well, that's horrible, but why did this spark the man's interest?"

"It was the manner in which I did it. Having had no previous training, I had taken a defensive stance, which was apparently very professional seeming."

**Flashback**

Jin flinched when he heard the man mention the incident. He had felt so bad about it, but everyone acted like he was trying to kill the teacher. Sometimes he wondered, in the dark confines of his mind, if he was.

"Do not worry. That is what made me interested in your talents." At this, Jin looked up at the man. "From what the witnesses described to me, you took to the sword like a natural. That kind of skill is to be praised, not shunned."

"But I almost killed her!"

"Do you not want to learn to control your skills, to hone them into greatness?"

"I guess..."

"No. You do not guess. Guessing does not happen here. It is a very simple, and easy question to answer. Do you want to take what is now your reason for guilt, and turn it into a sense of pride, or not?"

Gathering up his courage, Jin straightened up, and looked the man in the eyes.

"I'll do whatever it takes, sir."

The older man smiled, and put his paw on the boy's shoulder.

"Then as of now, you may call me Lord Amadus. And I know you won't fail me."

**Present Time**

"And that's how I got to be who I am."

Tigress stared at him, her face unreadable, until she blew up.

"What do you mean?! That doesn't tell me anything!"

"Right... Sorry. Actually knowing the story, my mind is just filling in the blanks. The 'school', if you want to call it that, was just a front. Amadus used it as an excuse to train children from the ground up, forming them into perfect warriors. Their training tended to be... extreme at the best of times. I was one such child in the program." Tigress' eyes widened, her mouth trying to form a coherent string of words.

"He...He did that to children?" Her voice was barely above a whisper. Gaining a nod from Jin, her head drooped a bit.

"I haven't seen my parents since being sent to that school... Any of my family or friends really. Friendship was not a value they taught there. What they did teach, was how to kill a man in three seconds." A tear escaped Jin's eye, despite his attempts.

"I'm sorry. If I had known how bad this was, I wouldn't have bothered you with it. I can see that this is difficult." Jin shook his head after she stopped.

"No, I needed to tell you at some point."

"Why is that?"

"Because we will have to face Amadus sooner or later."

"You mean..."

"He is the one leading the army. It's how I got the job in the first place. After our training was finished, the children were all let go, the only thing he wanted in return was our services when he needed them. Since I was his favorite student, he naturally chose me to call."

"Why have you not told Shifu about this already?"

"I have. Just not to the detailed extent that I have with you just now. He knows their leader is who trained me, and that his name is Amadus."

"Well... I thank you for being so open with me." Jin nodded, and then smirked. "What are you thinking now?"

"Since we're being so open, how about you tell me about what's going on with the panda?" Tigress froze.

"Wh-What do you mean?"

"Please. Mantis may be a moron, but even he wasn't so blind as not to see what was going on."

"I-I assure you, I h-have no idea what you're talking about." She stammered out, only making Jin smirk all the more.

"You're not making your case very well, Ms. Stutters-a-lot."

Tigress threw a glare at him, but it wasn't having the same effect as before. She dropped it, and Jin gave out a victorious fist pump.

"I knew it! You like him, don't you?"

"I don't know. I feel something for him, but I'm not very experienced in this matter."

"I can believe that." Receiving another glare, he continued his thought. "What I mean is, you don't seem the romantic type. Though I don't know how you haven't been approached before." At this, she gave him a confused look. "If you haven't noticed, you're rather fetching."

The color of red she turned could not be covered by any amount of orange fur. Seeing this, Jin smiled and continued.

"I'm sure the panda has noticed as well. Po is just too innocent to make any kind of move. If you really want to figure out your feelings, I'd suggest the scientific approach with the panda, using him as your test subject."

"What does that entail?"

Jin smirked, and simply said, "Experimentation."

* * *

**Uh oh... What is Jin going to have Tigress do with Po? Something tells me Po is going to have an interesting couple of days soon. (And I'm the writer, so you should trust me) Tell me what you thought, and please review!**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	13. Old Friends, New Enemies

**Hey guys! I'm on a roll, ironic considering my past week. (It sucked) But I digress. I wasn't originally going to put anything up for a couple of days, but I found myself writing, which I suppose is a good thing to fall back on, and came out with this. I apologize that even though I might update often, they're not usually very lengthy. Please tell me which you'd rather. Short, quick updates every two days, or longer chapters, that would probably be about a week in between. Anyway, two more important characters are added here, and their names were inspired by some fellow classmates. **

**And wow, guys! 47 reviews and over 4k views! Thank you all so much. The reviews really keep me going, it's like author crack. Now, on to a few replies.**

**Wra1thRid3r: You compared my writing to Soul of A Lion's masterpiece, for which I will be forever grateful. ****Not only that, but other great writers as well! ****My little author heart soared at reading that. **

**Simba593: Sorry to disappoint, but the 'experimentation' as it were will not be for at least another 3 chapters. But thank you for the compliment!**

**The Unbound Writer: I've now got a bunch of my favorite story's writers reviewing my own. This is, as a certain panda would say, awesome. Thank you as well!**

**The Pizza Man: You think that was all that Jin had under his belt? Mwhahahaha... Or something like that.**

**Christ's Disciple: When that comes up, I doubt I'll be able to stop chuckling as well. Humor is always good to help break up tension in a story, and I tried to take some inspiration from Soul of a Lion for that regard.**

**Anyway, enough of my babbling. To the next Short Chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I own everything! This time I really do! This chapter's all mine, baby.**

**(But in case I missed something, it belongs to DreamWorks)**

**Outskirts of China**

"I _cannot_ believe this." The commander was hunched over his desk, staring at the latest report. The noise from the soldiers outside his tent couldn't even break his gaze away from the words on the page. Normally he'd have already handed them all their asses for making such a ruckus, but today was different. He finally received word from his contact in the valley of peace, and he didn't like the news. "That fool went to the Jade Palace?"

_Fate is just not on my side this week._ He thought, while already trying to come up with an appropriate response. "So much for a surprise attack..." He mumbled, his face not hiding any of his frustration.

Sighing, he rolled up the report and calmly walked out of the tent. He moved through the crowd, not giving them a second glance. Some of them did, though. Whispers were abundant, as they realized who he was going to see. While the commander had developed quite the reputation of being a hard man to deal with, it was nothing compared to his lord. The man had attained an almost divine level of fear from the soldiers.

Reaching the entrance, he opened the door, and was immediately greeted by a glare from the table opposite him.

"Yes? What is it now?"

"Lord Amadus, we have just received a report from our contact in the Valley of Peace." He silently prayed that he would survive this encounter. He didn't fear Amadus like the others, but his respect for the man had no equal. He had known him for years now, and that also led to knowing him better than the others. They believed Amadus was some kind of demon.

_As if. Demons have nothing on this guy._

"Is this information I need to hear right now? I'm rather busy dealing with Jin's betrayal. Plans need to be ma-" He stopped short, noticing the commander's sudden apprehension at the mention of Jin's name. "This news... Does it concern Jin?" The commander nodded slowly, eliciting a growl from Amadus.

"He has traveled to the Jade Palace. He seems to be conversing with targets two through eight." Another growl emanated from the man's throat.

"That... complicates things. Have the twins arrived yet?" Receiving a nod, he continued. "Then inform them of their first mission. Capture Jin, alive or dead. Preferably alive."

"Sir, why alive? If he has truly changed sides, I doubt he will change his mind again."

"Yes, he was always rather stubborn. However, he still represents a good section of my life's work. My orders stand."

The commander nodded, and walked out. He exhaled deeply, and thanked whatever gods that were up there for watching over him.

**Elsewhere In The Camp**

"Why do you think he called for us?"

Nells looked up at her sister. She'd been curious as well, Amadus never called for anything less than serious. But he had not told them of the purpose for their involvement. She assumed it was for the usual, a quick follow up after Jin's escapades.

_Jin was always a strange character. _She thought to herself. _But he was a good enough friend during our years at the school. Being teacher's pet didn't seem to phase him, either._

"I honestly have no idea. But I heard that Jin was ordered here as well, maybe we'll get to see him again." At that, her younger sister's attitude brightened noticeably.

"I haven't seen him in over a year! I wonder if he's changed?"

"Please, Kori, he's much too stubborn to change anything."

Their conversation was interrupted as the commander walked in. He didn't look all too pleased, so both sisters jumped to standing positions, saluting him.

"What is it, Commander?" Their voices in unison, grated on his nerves, but he knew better than to let his bad day affect his judgement.

"Get ready for your first mission here. Details will be given to you tonight, so pack up what you need and be ready." Both girls nodded, and as he began to leave, one of them spoke up.

"Sir, I heard Jin was here. When do you think we'll get to meet him? We haven't seen each other in some time."

_Irony, gotta love it. _"If all goes well, you will meet him at your target's location."

The girl quirked her head to one side, and the other simply asked the next question.

"Is he currently observing the target? Why is he there?"

The commander turned, smiling as he did so. Before he spoke, though, he regained his composure, and stood as stoicly as he could.

"Because he _is_ your next target."

**Five Hours Later**

The twin leopardesses were just about finished packing the essentials, having done so in silence the entire time.

"Sis... I don't think I can do this."

She looked over to Kori, and tried to give her a reassuring smile. It failed quickly, however, the second she saw the hurt on her sister's face.

"It'll be alright. Jin must have done something, something he shouldn't have. You know how good he is at that." Her attempt at some humor passed by without the faintest hint of uplifting the girls' spirits. "Besides, he did say dead or alive. You know Jin will listen to us, he can see reason."

"But if he did change sides, you know that he must have had a good reason. And if he did, there's no way we can argue with him. He wouldn't pay attention."

Nells sighed, and quietly accepted what must be done.

"Then we do as ordered. Jin must die."

**Well? I know it was short, but this was just a quick thing I wrote on the fly by. Please give me your opinion on the short vs. long chapters. I can't know what you'll like until you tell me!**

**And so much drama! Drama everywhere! Drama is ALL THE THINGS!**

**lol**

**Also, looking at the traffic page, I can see that a lot of you are from various parts of the world. If you do not know english well enough to leave a review, please leave one in whatever language you do speak, and I will take the time to attempt a translation and reply to you. Ta ra!**


	14. Decisions, Decisions

**Sup, guys? I wanted to make the next chapter longer, but again I found something to not quite fit. So I separated the chapter into two bits, since it feels better in my mind this way. The other part is longer, mind you, so it won't just be two shorts parts. The next one will be more of a full blown chapter. Yay. And 52 reviews! I love you all way too much! My story has amassed way more than I had imagined it would. Thank you. In other news, Soul of a Lion has returned! His story was just updated, stating that he will be continuing his story sometime by January. How awesome is that? Now, a few replies, and we'll get on with the chapter so you can go check it out yourself.**

**Simba593: Don't worry, it is definitely coming. I love romance more than most categories, so I'm looking forward to it just as much as you are!**

**KatherineAshton: I can see it, lol. Anyway, thank you for the compliment! And so I suppose you'll like this chapter, then, judging by your preference?**

**Christ's Disciple: Thank you again, and the final fight is a way off. After having gone over my plot and all the wonderful thins that go with it, (I have a small sketchbook timeline to use) I realized that this is going to be much longer than I first anticipated. I suppose that's a good thing though, right? I'm going for the long haul, heh.**

**The Pizza Man: Yes, no 'experimentation'. It's killing me not to post some of it, though. I have a few scenes for when it comes already written up, and having them sit there in my laptop files is really hurting me, lol. No, you can't have a peek.**

**Guest: Yes, that is exactly how I planned it. (He lied) Shut up, stupid conscience...**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OC, the rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Jade Palace, The Next Morning**

The night had passed seemingly without incident for the others. But when they all came together in the hallway after the morning gong, they were quick to notice the bruise adorning Jin's face. Shifu had decided to ignore it, and informed them all that he would tell them of his decision regarding preparation after training. As he left, all but Tigress looked over at Jin wondering where it came from. The aforementioned tiger, just casually strolled away, and no one could miss the smirk that she made no attempt to hide. When she had left the barracks, Jin was barraged by questions.

"What did you do, Jin?" Viper asked, her head slightly tilted to one side.

When the others nodded, Jin simply followed Tigress out, mumbling to himself. He turned his head right before he reached the door, and said something they could all hear before he continued.

"Never mention flirting around Tigress."

For the others, that simply raised bigger questions. Knowing that they wouldn't get a straight answer anytime soon, however, they left as well.

**With Shifu**

A lone red panda sat in the middle of the tiled floor. Lost in his own concentration, he mulled over the dilemna at hand.

"What to do..."

He had been weighing his options now for some time during his meditation, and neither of his best choices were too appealing. He even tried applying some of Oogway's teachings, but none seemed to fit the situation well enough. Only one could really be used here, and it would certainly shake things up a bit. Ironic that it be from the conversation where he learned of the prophecy in the first place.

_A true warrior is deemed so, through his heart, and the friends that fill it._

He sighed. How loose could the definition of the term 'friends' be used? If he were to go through with what he thought was the best approach, no doubt there would be consequences. But it wasn't even so much the issues it could cause that bothered him. It was whether it would be enough even then.

"..."

He quickly shook away that feeling, knowing it would get him nowhere. He rose up from his silent meditation, having found his answer.

"This will be... interesting."

**Miles Away, Unknown Forest**

"Come on! We have to get a move on!"

Kori grunted in response, not showing any signs of moving faster. They had been running for almost a day now. They had been trained for such, sure, but everyone had a limit. There was also the matter of their destination, and that weighed heavily upon her mind.

"I'm sorry I don't have the same motivation as you do, sister."

Nells stopped, and she did the same. They both stopped to rest, and catch their breaths.

"Look, I know this seems wrong."

"It _seems_ wrong?!"

Nells sighed, sitting on a nearby fallen tree. This feeling of hesitation would hold over them until they settled the matter, here and now.

"We must find motive, determination is-"

Kori interrupted, "Yes, yes. Determination is the key to victory. Already had that drilled into my head, thank you."

"My statement still stands. How do we find a reason?"

Nells looked over to her sister, and when they made eye contact, they could both tell motivation was not the question. It was loyalty. But, to who?

**Training Room**

"So..." Everyone looked over to Tigress, who had started to speak after almost an entire training session of awkward silence between them all. "You said you were more experienced with a sword, yes?" When Jin nodded, she continued, "Perhaps you could show us?"

"I..." Noticing the look in her eye, Jin decided against angering her any further. "Very well." He walked over to his blade, which had been resting against the wall. "Are any of you trained in weaponry?"

"We've all been taught the basics, well, except for Po."

Jin shook his head, and turned, black sword in hand.

"The army that is so daunting in your minds is more well versed in such matters. If you wish to be truly prepared yourselves, you must expect more than a few sharp edges in your future."

Tigress snarled, walking a few steps until she was between Jin and the others.

"We can hold our own, we have for years. Weapons are not everything in a battle."

"No." He stood straight, blade to one side. "But they help." With that, Jin sped towards her, and she readied herself.

* * *

**Ooooh! Fight! Lol. Anyway, as always, review and tell me what you thought. Constructive criticism is appreciated.**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	15. Reconciliation and the Unknown

**Hey, guys. I've decided, here and now: I don't like writing fight scenes. They're more difficult than I had thought, and getting this one just right was not by any means an easy task. I'm still not sure about how it turned out. But anyway, here it is. And some bad news, though some of you may not care, and I wouldn't blame you. The origin story for Jin is all but abandoned. I've hit way too many snags, so if I ever return to it, it will most likely not be for a while. This will not affect understanding this story in any way, thankfully. Sorry to anyone who might have been looking forward to it. It was an undertaking I was not quite prepared for, and my reach was beyond my grasp on this one. On another, less depressing note, we're well over 5k views now! Yay! I stayed up a while perfecting this chapter, and it's now 3 am looking at the clock. I need to stop doing that... A few comment replies, and I'll get to the chapter.**

**Guests: Thank you both for your reviews, I really appreciate the support.**

**Monkeycyborgninja: I am glad that you liked it, and I hope you enjoyed the meeting chapter as well.**

**KatherineAshton: You think you seem like a stalker? You obviously didn't read the Pizza Man's review, lol. And this is just a best guess, based on my little sketchbook timeline,(don't know what else to call it), but I think this will reach at least 25 chapters, maybe more. And then there's the sequel that I've started planning. Oh lord, I've got a lot of writing to do, huh?**

**Christ's Disciple: Thank you again for the compliment. And this fight will probably disappoint you, but I can only hope.**

**The Pizza Man: You can't guess who will win? I want all of you to try, before reading this. See if you were right. And... there are no words to describe that last bit. Lol.**

**Disclaimer: I own only My OCs and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**With Shifu**

Shifu was walking back to the training hall, having grown more confident in his decision. Taking a brisk pace, he began ascending the last bit of stairs towards the hall.

_Crash!_

"What in the heavens...?" Looking up at the top of the stairs, he saw Tigress thrown through a wall, only to roar and jump right back through the hole.

**Training Hall, Three Minutes Earlier**

"No. But they help." Jin dashed forward, and cut a low swath at Tigress' legs. She jumped and somersaulted above and over Jin, and when she landed sent a kick at his back. He held up his black steel, forcing her to abort, and while she was off balance, he sent a fist into her chest, knocking her back and through the wall.

"Damn. And they just fixed that." Mantis retorted, as they all watched her jump back in and the fight continued to unfold.

"Guys, I think this is going a bit far..." Po shuffled his feet, not comfortable with the situation.

Tigress and Jin had stopped their attacks, and looked over to the panda. Tigress didn't look at all happy.

"It'll have gone where it needs to go when I've knocked Jin into the next century!"

Jin rolled his eyes, sheathing his sword, which received a sigh of relief from Po and the others. He crossed his arms, and once Tigress' attention was back on him, she glared with as much anger she could infuse into it.

"How our conversation ended last night must have angered you more than I had imagined." Jin stated, practically sending her into a frenzy.

"Hasn't anyone ever told you?" She rushed at him, claws unsheathed. "Never let your guard up with an opponent!"

When she reached him, Jin spun and drew his blade in one fluid motion, grabbing her arms and pressing them into her back with his free paw, effectively trapping her. Her back to his chest, she struggled a bit but couldn't break free. He put the weapon up to her neck, making sure not to have it get too close.

"I would suggest you surrender."

Tigress growled, but before she could do anything, the doors to the hall swung open, revealing a very irate Shifu. Looking upon the scene before him, he decided shouting was the best course of action.

"What is going on here?!" When he didn't get an answer, he focused his attention on Jin, who still had Tigress trapped. "Put that weapon away now!"

Jin paused a moment, looking between Shifu and Tigress below him.

_Death by very angry tiger, or very angry teacher?_

_ ..._

_ I'll go with option three._ He released Tigress, and jumped back several feet, to put some distance between them. Sheathing his blade again, he watched with interest, wondering how this would end. Tigress turned around, but was stopped by Shifu, who had his staff blocking her way.

"Enough. How did this start?" He sent an accusatory glance at both of them, waiting for a response.

"Simply enough." Tigress began, having calmed down to a degree, though she still wanted to beat Jin to a pulp. "We had an argument, and it came to a head. I-"

"I challenged her to a spar." Jin interrupted, sending a look towards Tigress. "I said that I could beat her if I was allowed my weapon, and whether or not that was true, I was wrong to instigate. Apologies."

Shifu didn't look quite convinced, but he left it alone and began to walk back towards the door.

"Very well. You will both fix the wall that was damaged, _again,_ but not right now. Follow me to the kitchen. Po?"

The panda in question rushed to reply. "Yes Master?"

"Please begin to prepare lunch. I have matters that need to be discussed, and I'd rather not put off eating any longer."

Jin stepped forward, before Shifu had exited the room.

"Does this mean you have reached a decision regarding the preparations?"

"I suppose you'll find out during lunch." And with that, Shifu had left, the others following in close tandem. Tigress and Jin were the only ones left now, and she was thoroughly confused.

"I didn't need you to defend me, you know."

"I know that." Jin replied, starting to make his way to the door.

"Then why? I started that fight. I should have been the one to answer for it."

Jin stopped and turned to face her.

"I am the one who made you uncomfortable last night, and we both know that is what started this in the first place. So it's really my fault." He grinned, though Tigress thought it looked more like a smirk. "Besides, I totally kicked your butt. Worth it."

Her eyes narrowed, but she followed him out of the hall. Walking next to him, she punched his arm, eliciting a small whine from the receiving end of it.

"Jeeze, are your arms made of stone or something?" He said, rubbing what would most likely become a bruise.

"Might as well be." She punched his other arm. Another low whine. "And I expect a rematch."

Jin stared at her as she moved ahead. He couldn't see her face, but he could tell she was grinning.

**Outskirts of China, Enemy Base Camp**

The commander was a happy man. And that could be considered an understatement. The army was almost ready, they would be at full strength within just a couple weeks time.

_Not even that fool could prepare an entire nation in such a short amount of time._ He smiled again, for what must be the twentieth time today. Picking up another report, he continued finishing up some plans for outlying regions. He was a strategic thinker, he felt most at home when making his grand designs for war. And these were grand designs, indeed. Though waiting on the soldiers to arrive and be properly trained was taxing on his patience. He wanted to see bloodshed, and soon.

"Commander?"

He sighed, and turned to see one of his lieutenants poking his head through the tent door.

"Yes?"

"We have received news, of an odd nature, sir."

"Does this require my attention? I am rather busy."

"Believe me, sir. You'll want to see this."

He got up, and took the scroll from the leopard's paws. Going over the text, his eyes grew wider and wider, until he snarled, ripping the parchment in half. The lieutenant whimpered, rushing out and away from the tent.

"This cannot be. How could he have already amassed a force?" He began to pace, his fury evident in his steps. "It's not enough to stop us, but where did he get troops so quickly?" He stopped, the anger gone from his face, but it was not replaced by a smile. Seemingly all emotion had drained from him.

"Unless it's not of his doing."

* * *

**I hope this wasn't too bad. Did you guys guess correctly who would win the fight? And what's this other army about? Tune in next time to find out! No, that felt weird. Just wait for the next chapter, mkay? Review and please feel free to give me your ideas. Even if it can't go in this story, it might fit in the sequel. Review? Maybe? It only takes a second... **

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	16. The Enemy of My Enemy

**Alright guys. I've decided that shorter, quick updates are more my style. They are simply easier for me to do, and I feel more comfortable writing them this way. And since the story is somewhat broken up at the moment, since the characters aren't all together yet, I suspect that the chapters will get longer as the story progresses. I apologize to those who wished for the weekly longer updates. And this way, I think I may be able to get a new segment up almost every day! Exciting? Hopefully. And since the chapters will be coming out so quickly, I suggest checking every time to see if you had read the previous chapter. Including this time, as it was very quick.**

**Simba593: I'm glad to see I've still captured your interest. And of course Jin won! He's too awesome. I try to make my OC a little more believable, since a few stories have made theirs a little overpowered in my opinion. But I felt like that match would not have been too lengthy. Lol.**

**KatherineAshton: Thank you for saying otherwise about my fight scene. I guess as the writer, I will always feel that it isn't very good. A mental handicap, I suppose. And I hope you do join! If and when you ever do, hit me up! I would always be willing to help with your story.**

**The Pizza Man: Stay outta my brand new laptop! Its my baby... Well, its my second baby. First and foremost baby is my RAP4 T68 Avenger. Which I will be forced to use if you touch my stuff. I dare you to look it up. Lol.**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OC and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Kitchen**

"You want to do what?!"

They had all sat down for lunch, and Shifu had begun to tell them of his plans. The outburst from the Five almost caused Po to drop the soup pot, as he was divying the food out to them all. But even he was stunned.

"You heard me correctly. If we are going to win this war, we need help. We cannot do this alone."

They were all frozen in place, none were sure how to go about this. Except one.

"So do you have any particular people in mind?" All eyes went to Jin, who had seemed all but unaffected by the news. Viper was the first to speak up.

"Jin, I can't believe I'm saying this, but surely you don't agree with Master Shifu!"

"And why shouldn't I?"

"He's talking about working with criminals! The people we've been working against all these years!"

"And now you'll work with them. I don't see the problem. Whether you like these people or not is irrelevant. We need them."

Shifu rejoined the conversation.

"Thank you, Jin." Receiving a nod from him, he continued. "And as for specific people in mind, there are a few. We will need to get in contact with them all, it shouldn't be too difficult. I'm sure most of them monitor our movement anyway."

"So how do we reach them?" Tigress asked.

"Well that's easy enough." Jin said, relaxing in his seat.

"Oh, right. You probably know how to get to them, you were a criminal. No offense." Mantis added that last part very quickly, realizing how that sounded.

"None taken Mantis." Jin shook his head. "But that's not even why I would know. I know because I always worked from the shadows, making sure not to attract attention."

"Wouldn't that be the opposite of what we're trying to do?"

"Yes. But to stay quiet, you need to know what makes noise."

**Northern China**

"Ma'am!"

She mentally growled, this guy had been annoying her for days now. She was in charge of this army, was she not? Sure, he was the hired advisor, but that didn't mean questioning every move was a granted right.

"What is it, now?"

"I must object to your strategy."

She groaned, and turned to face him. How she wished she could just get rid of the nuisance, but the men trusted him. Eliminating him now could have consequences that she did not want to deal with right now.

"I am well aware of how my actions may end. But whether or not I want to rule China, that does me no good if it's already been conquered. There is no other choice."

He opened his mouth to say something, but shut it, thinking it would be wise not to push his luck. Unfortunately, she saw this.

"Yes? You have an idea, obviously. Spit it out."

"It's just... We don't have the manpower to defeat such an army as the reports suggest is coming. We need help."

She grew curious, brow now raised.

"We have amassed the largest collection of bandits and criminals in decades. Where would this extra help come from, I wonder?"

"From those who are not criminals, ma'am."

She stood, and slowly walked towards him. He cowered more and more into himself as she grew closer. Finally, she towered over his small frame, and if he could have collapsed in on himself, it would have happened by now.

_I can't believe he had the gaul to suggest such an idea to me. Impressive._ She thought to herself for a minute, though for him it seemed like hours.

"Our spies have confirmed that the Jade Palace is aware of the threat, correct?"

He nodded furiously, and a small hope grew in his tight chest. She thought for another minute, and made a decision.

"Inform my sisters. We will wait until the Jade Palace makes a move. They cannot hope to win alone, either. If they show a desire to join forces, I will make no objection."

"And if they don't?"

"Then the army of the Wu sisters will stand alone."

* * *

**OOOh! And the army is revealed. Did you not see the Wu sisters coming? I had to put them in, they're really cool characters! Anyway, review and feel free to leave constructive criticism as always.**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	17. Broken Pasts

**Here we are again. As I had hoped, I've been in writing overload since my break started. The reason that this is only coming out now, is that I've been trying to get a few future chapters ready, to avoid procrastination problems. Might as well take advantage of the overload, right?**

**Anyway, a few people pm'd me about the origin story, asking about what problems I was having. For any of you who would like to know, part of the problem is that it has to conform to everything I'm planning in this story, and that limits what I can do. There's not much in this story so far that would severely hurt it, but I have stuff planned that might. If and when I come back to it, I'll have to sort out some contradictions and such, and since the story will progress since now, maybe I'll have a better idea of how to go about it.**

**A few comment replies, and we're off!**

**Christ's Disciple: I'm glad you're excited. ... Yep.**

**Simba593: Thank you for agreeing with me, and I'm happy you think Jin could work in the movies. That would be awesome. The Wu sisters are a dangerous bunch, huh?**

**Cindz Cindz: Thanks for thinking I'm talented. And patience is overrated, lol. Must have update now!**

**The Pizza Man: Wu Sisters rock. They had to be in this story.**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: I could guess it was you, lol. And being tired is fine, just make sure to sleep later, lol.**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OCs and the plot, the rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Jade Palace, Barracks Rooftop**

_He sure is full of surprises. _Tigress looked over to her side at Jin, thinking about what she knew of him so far. He had been a mercenary, the type of person she had practically been bred to hate. The kind of person that she wouldn't have given a second thought to throwing in jail. _But that was all in his past._ She reminded herself, slightly shaking her head. _I can't exactly forgive him for his sins, but I can help him amend them._

"Something on your mind?"

Her head shot up with a start, and stared at him for a second.

"I suppose."

Jin watched for another few seconds, before finally speaking up again.

"Care to share?"

"It's just, how can you go from being... what you were, to this, so quickly, and without the slightest hint of discomfort?"

"That... is a rather simple question, with a complicated answer." He sighed and stretched out his body, releasing a small yawn. "Even when I was still what you'd have considered, 'a bad guy', I never thought of myself as evil."

She gave him a look, and motioned for him to continue.

"I had always taken pride in knowing that while so many others like me simply killed and took what they needed, I avoided death where possible. I'm not saying I never killed, though. But when I did, there was never a moment when I didn't regret it. I can still see their faces..." He looked away, tears had started to form, and looking weak was not on his agenda for tonight.

Tigress went to put her paw on his shoulder, but hesitated. She couldn't see his face, but she knew the aura of hurt when she saw it. She couldn't help but feel that this was not something he wanted to be comforted about. You can't numb a pain like that, not completely. And the aches that would follow, would be worse than the original burn.

"None of them were innocent people by any definition. Being the target of the kinds of people I worked with meant they were never saints. But that doesn't make me feel any better about it. But that was the only solace I could ever find."

"Jin, none of this matters anymore."

He turned, a shocked look appeared on his face.

"You must understand, Jin. If you regret their deaths as you do, and strive to become better as you are now, then I believe you are a good person. Perhaps one with a nasty past, but a good person all the same."

"Thank you. But I may never fully believe that myself."

"For your sake, I hope you will someday."

They both stayed quiet for several minutes, just enjoying the company and the fresh air.

"So..."

Well, that didn't last long.

"We always talk about me up here, and the one time we didn't, I ended up with a bruise on my face. Can we maybe change that?"

"You want a bruise on the other eye?" She growled, half joking, half serious.

"No, what I meant was maybe we can talk about your past. You mentioned that first night you had felt similar to my situation, you used the word monster. Maybe you could elaborate?"

It was her turn to sigh now. _He told me everything, it's only fair that I return the gesture._

"You know that Master Shifu is my adopted father, correct?" When Jin nodded, she continued. "The place where he got me, is called the Bao Gu orphanage. I was the only tiger cub there, and as such, the other children were always afraid of me. I was never in control of my own strength, and they learned to stay far away from me. Eventually I became known as the monster of Bao Gu, Tigress the monster. I know it doesn't compare to your tale, that's why I said I could never begin to-" She stopped short, noticing Jin scooching over to her. "What are you-"

She was interrupted, but this time, not of her own accord. Jin had silenced her with a hug, which he soon broke in fear of being mauled. He saw her face, and decided to explain before he was eviscerated.

"I may have had a harder physical life, but I always had thoughts of my parents and brother. I may have been very young when it happened, my brother even younger, but love is not something easily lost. You never had that luxury."

"Thank you." Those were the only words she could come up with. Until she realized something. "You do know that I'm gonna have to hurt you now, right? No one hugs me and gets away with it."

"Oh really? That's not what I heard..."

Tigress' eyes widened. _He couldn't..._

"What do you mean?"

"I was told that a certain panda got away with just that. Twice, as a matter of fact."

"Who told you?"

"Who do you think?"

They both chuckled, and said in perfect unison,

"Mantis."

After that, they simply talked about life in the Jade Palace before this had all started, and Jin retold a few of his missions. Less bloody ones, of course.

"And that's when he realized all of his lackies were unconscious on the floor!" They shared a few laughs, and then decided it would be best to get some shuteye.

"Before we go to sleep..."

Jin looked back at her, she had stopped right at the edge of the roof.

"I would just like to know... What are you planning on doing? You weren't very specific with your plans on gathering help."

Jin smiled, and laid back on the roof, grabbing his cloak and using it as a pillow, making sure that Iragetsu was beside him.

"I guess you'll find out tomorrow, along with the others."

She shook her head, and jumped down out of sight.

Getting comfortable, Jin stared up at the sky.

"Tomorrow is going to be... Interesting."

* * *

**Apologies that you didn't get to find anything out this time. I don't really like making you guys wait for a filler chapter, but this time I had to. The really exciting bits are coming though! Be prepared for that. Tell me what you thought, and please review. Oh, and the other day we broke this story's previous view count record for a single day! Yay for us!**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	18. The Best Laid Traps of Leopards

**Hello, all! Sorry about this one taking a bit longer, I was supposed to have it out a few hours ago. But my parents made me 'participate' in my brother's birthday party. I don't like him. Anyways, this time, it's a longer chapter! Yay! Not much else to say, here, before the replies. Oh! A question to the other writers out there- Do you guys often have trouble getting timing right? I've been having some difficulty getting things to seem believable in the chronotic sense.**

**The Pizza Man: I can only hope this gets that popular. And maybe when the sequel comes around, I'll get another chance. And I know, right? Stupid doomsday prophecies. _My_ prophecy seems more likely, lol.**

**Christ's Disciple: I'm sorry it didn't have much in it. Filler chapters rarely do. And about the hug, I'm trying to get them to be friends. Not as good as Po, obviously. And she did say she was going to hurt him. She just forgot in lieu of being angry at Mantis, lol.**

**Simba593: Jin isn't anything to Tigress, per say. Certainly not related, anyway. Just trying to get them to be on good terms.**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OCs and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Valley of Peace**

The day began much like any other in the valley. That meant that, more likely than not, something horrible was going to happen. And it was probably going to involve the Jade Palace. Today was no exception, however the disaster would be planned this time.

"You've got to be joking."

As he had expected, the others were not too keen on his idea for attracting the first set of villains.

"I assure you, I am not. I know this will work, I've done something similar before, and it worked like a charm."

"That doesn't mean it will this time! And the circumstances are completely different!" Monkey replied, shaking his head.

Jin stopped listening to them all for a moment, they were becoming white noise. Practically all of them were just shouting now, save Shifu and Po. Shifu stood silently, obviously deep in thought. Po just seemed nervous. Shifu finally held up his hand, motioning for them to stop. When they did, he started speaking.

"While I have reservations, I believe the plan may work." They all opened their mouths to protest, but he again held up his hand. "That does not mean the artifacts will be left unguarded, however. I and Master Crane will be present in the hall, you just have to make sure you're at the village."

They all still looked unconvinced, but knew better than to question Shifu's judgment.

"Shouldn't more of us be left to guard the artifacts?"

"No. And technically, all of us will be leaving for the village. We all need to be seen. They will make a small appaearance, and return, hopefully without attracting attention to themselves. Besides, if this goes as I hope it does, the artifacts will never be in danger in the first place."

Mantis stepped forward.

"Well, if we're really gonna do this, can you go over the plan again, real quick? If this goes wrong, I don't want to be blamed for not doing it correctly."

Jin shook his head, chuckled, and called for Zeng. When the goose was ready, he relayed the message.

"Tell all you can that the palace will be holding an event. We will be making a presentation in the village square, at around noon, featuring _all_ of us. Make sure they all know that we will all be present, I can't stress that enough."

Zeng nodded, and flew off to inform the valley and surrounding villages. Tigress stepped forward, her arms crossed.

"And now what?"

"Now? Now I get to show off."

**One Hour Later**

Su was once again going over battle strategies. She was quickly growing tired of it, however. There was unfortunately not much else for her to do.

_If something doesn't happen in the next couple of hours, I'm going to kill someone._

"Ma'am?"

_Salvation at last!_

"Yes? What is it?"

"Our spies in the Valley of Peace have reported something... interesting."

Su turned from the table, her curiousity peaking.

"Well? What happened?"

"Apparently the Jade Palace is hosting a tournament, so to speak. They are all supposed to be gathering in the village square to showcase their talents."

"They're doing what?! In the middle of what they know is going to be a wa-." She stopped short, an idea striking her.

"Ma'am?"

"You said they were all going to be there? Every last one?" When the man nodded, she smiled. "Oh, they're getting sneaky now, are they?"

"What do you mean?"

"It's one of the oldest tricks in the book for a villain. It's a bait. They know we'd never pass up the chance at the artifacts in that accursed hall of theirs."

"So... It's a trap, then?"

"Yes. And we're going to trip it. None of those fools would ever come up with something so underhanded like that. It must have come from a different source. That leopard the spies told us about. He must have come from a darker background. He knew I'd recognize the obvious trap. Any self-respecting villain could see it."

"So why go for it, then?"

"If they're accepting help from one such as him, and he proposed such an idea... They're trying to reach out to us."

"Does this mean I should prepare the soldiers to move?"

She shook her head, and took a few steps away. Grabbing a scarf, she donned it and began to walk out of the tent.

"I'm going to retrieve my sisters. If an army goes up to the palace, it won't end well. We will go alone." She stopped at the entrance to the tent. "Actually, forget falling in the trap. I have a better idea."

**Two Hours Later in the Village, Noon**

A crowd had gathered around the square, many had come from the neighboring villages to watch the Five perform. Having heard that they all would be participating, they eagerly awaited the Dragon Warrior, as well.

The masters waited near the bottom of the stairs, away from the crowd's sight. Jin had put on his cloak, not quite feeling comfortable near large groups of people yet. Shifu had appeared in front of the crowd earlier, adding to the illusion that no one would be attending the palace. Of course, after having given a small speech, he and Crane had returned to the hall discreetly.

"They're all waiting, Jin. When should we start?" Asked Tigress.

"Right now. Po, I'd think it's safe to say you're pretty popular with a crowd. Go out and say something."

"Like what? I'm not very good at speeches."

"It doesn't matter what. Just announce that the tournament is about to start. Shifu and Crane should have reached the hall by now, and I'm sure that our _friends_ have already arrived. Now-." Jin paused, looking at Po. His face had contorted to one of complete shock. "Po? What is it?"

"I- th-they... what..." Po stuttered, slowly raising his paw and pointing at the crowd.

The swarm of villagers had begun to divide, a few people yelling in suprise. When the crowd had finally parted, they could see three figures nonchalantly moving towards them. The Five immediately took stances, but Jin just stood there.

"Hello, all. We heard you were having a little party."

Jin, still not having moved, just smiled.

"Well, I didn't exactly expect that."

"Oh? Were you planning on something else?"

"No. But you're early. I never got to show off."

* * *

**What did you think? Please leave reviews, as it helps me know that you guys still like my story. Constructive criticism as always, is appreciated. Destructive criticism, like the stupid PM I received(you know who you are) will be ignored. Thank you.**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	19. Often Go Awry

**Well, another chapter, another update. How are all of you doing? Here's hoping the answer to that is good, seeing as its the holidays. Well, this is it. The gang is all together, now. Whoopee! Also, if you hadn't noticed, there is now a chapter missing. It was just the News chapter, so nothing important is gone. I wanted to get rid of it, since it's not a real chap. Anyways, the story! Here's a few comment replies, and I'll get right to it!**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: So. Are. You! lol.**

**Christ's Disciple: I'm glad you liked the chapter, and a happy New Years to you too!**

**The Wolf Artist: Welcome new reviewer! I look forward to supplying this chapter, too! In fact, I'm looking at it right now.**

**The Pizza Man: I was talking about the prophecy in the beginning of my story, lol. And I don't celebrate Christmas, but I hope you all have a nice holiday!**

**The StarsShadow15: Welcome second new reviewer! Don't worry, the fluff is a comin! I personally love the pairing, so that is a given. But like I've said, most of it won't come until the sequel. There will most likely only be a few moments between them for now. Also, I know that Tigress shouldn't be as irritable, but what can I say? Angry Tigress is fun, and Jin is the perfect fuel for it, lol. Actually, looking back at the chapters I have finished, there should be one of the PxT moments coming next chapter... **

**Guest: It's okay if you miss a chapter, just make sure to catch up, lol!**

**Disclaimer: I own only My OCs and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Valley of Peace**

Jin walked up to the trio, while the rest, including the villagers, just stared on in shock.

"So, I assume you three are the infamous Wu sisters?" The sister closest to him nodded. "I might also assume you would be the leader, yes?"

"Correct again. I am Su, and these are my sisters, Wing and Wan." After their names were called, each sister nodded respectively. "I must admit, you have me at a disadvantage. We know next to nothing about you."

As their conversation continued, the masters watched on, some were simply confused, though one in particular seemed ready to rip Jin's head off.

"Excuse me?"

The sisters and Jin turned to find the source of the voice, finding Tigress looking very cross.

"I can't believe this is happening to me again! How are you just having a normal conversation?!"

"Well, it's not like we didn't know they were coming."

"That's besides the point! Three of China's most notorious criminals just walk up and you act like old friends!"

Su decided to interrupt, and walked between them.

"That's because we practically are. Criminals have a code too, you know. Our code is just more fun." She added that last bit, purely out of spite.

"I'll show you fun..." Tigress growled and advanced, prompting Jin to hold out his arm, in warning.

"Tigress, wait! The plan was to get them here so they could help us. Not to beat each other up."

"The plan, Jin, was to capture them when they tried to steal an artifact from the hall! They obviously came here to do just that, so I'm going to stick to the plan."

"Tigress, if they came here to steal, why would they just walk up and say hi?"

That put a pause in her step. She seemed to contemplate for a moment, and refocused on Jin.

"You planned this, didn't you?" Jin said nothing, but sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, a smile threatening the corner of his mouth. "You lied to us?!"

...

_Uh oh._

"Tigress, wait!" His outburst didn't stop her this time. She kept moving towards him.

_I'm in no position to argue here, am I?... Damn it. This is gonna hurt._

Tigress' fist collided with the side of Jin's face, sending him back a few feet. When he got up, he wiped some spit from his muzzle, and stood straight, walking back over to the group.

"Feel better?"

"A little, yeah."

_**Smack!**_

Jin was sent back another couple feet, and when he got up, he gave her a quizzical look.

"I forgot to hurt you last night. Now we're even."

"You guys are all seriously just gonna sit there while I take a beating?" Jin questioned the rest of them, but when they nodded, the Wu sisters excluded, he shook his head and walked back over again, making sure to stay a distance from Tigress this time, in case there was something else she remembered to hurt him for. When he reached them, Su cracked a grin.

"If you aren't comfortable with hitting her, I could do it for you." Jin smiled, and shook his head wistfully.

"Thanks, but no thanks, hot stuff. I can fight my own battles."

For the second time this week, time stopped. The Wu sisters stared in shock, but the masters all had various reactions. Jin didn't understand the reaction.

"What? Was it something I said?"

**Jade Palace**

"Master Shifu?"

"Yes?"

"Shouldn't something have, you know. Happened by now? The Wu sisters would have had plenty of time by now to get here."

"True..." He stayed silent for a minute, until he made his decision.

**Village Square**

Monkey doubled over, clutching his sides, with Mantis right beside him. They were both struggling to say something, but the laughter was cancelling out any coherent words. Monkey finally managed to calm down, and say something, with Mantis quick to follow.

"Dude, you've so got a death wish."

"Agreed. I mean, seriously? You're gonna hit on one of the Wu sisters?"

Meanwhile, the previously stated sisters had gathered themselves, and the two younger sisters looked in an outrage. Su, however...

"He's got more of a chance than either of you two buffoons. With any lady, for that matter."

Now it was Jin's turn to bust out laughing, pointing at the two now stunned masters.

"Nothing to say to that, hmmm? I was right, I do have more of... of..." He slowed down, turning slightly to look at Su. "Wait, what did you say?"

**Nearby**

The two girls watched on, drawn in by the hilarity of the situation.

"Shouldn't we, you know... Go after him?"

Nells looked over at her sister. They were both stifling chuckles, now.

"And interfere with this? I think not. Jin was never the smoothest talker, but this is just too good. Let's wait a while."

Kori nodded, turning her attention back to the group. Nells continued.

"Besides, we couldn't take them all on. We might not even be able to take Jin down, let alone nine other highly trained masters. No, we'll wait until nightfall. If we're lucky, Jin will fall asleep as quickly as he did back in the day."

Kori let out a small laugh, and finished her sister's thought.

"Hopefully he's as deep a sleeper, too. I wonder if he still snores?"

The twins finished their observations, and fell back.

"Nightfall it is."

* * *

**Ooooh! Now what? Only I know! Mwahahaha! *cough* Anyway, there's another chapter done. I'm actually not sure about this one, though. Something again felt off about it. I looked it over, but nothing hit me. Oh well. And an idea! For when the 100th reviewer comes along, they get to request a 1 shot about any topic they so choose! Incentive, no? Review please, and as always, constructive criticism is appreciated!**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	20. One Does Not Simply Walk Into The Palace

**... Wow. You guys know how I said last week how you had broken this story's daily view record? You did it again. But last time, you broke it by about twenty. This time, it was by over a hundred. Sweet. Technically, it was actually 101, which I find hilarious, because it means I can still say over a hundred, lol. You guys hit 434 views in one day! Yayz. This chapter would have actually been up yesterday, but I was playing Amnesia... I had a decidedly F*** My Life moment, and consequently stayed away from my laptop for a day. Anyway, some of you probably had trouble reviewing the last chapter, because I deleted the news chap from earlier. Reviews should work fine for this one, though, and all following chapters. Of which there are now twenty! This is the twentieth chapter! Hooray! Oh, and I think you'll like this one. A little treat is involved. I know that I've been making this story a bit OC-centric, which is usually what OCs are for, but I promised PxT, and damn it, I'm giving it to you. Oh, and how do you guys like the chapter titles I've been giving? A few comment replies, and we're off.**

**Guest: I have to keep the story funny, humor is fun, lol.**

**The Pizza Man: I figured out what it was that felt off, and decided it actually worked fine anyway. And thats... A really weird fact, lol. A/N(I just found out that Colgate means nothing, but cuelgate means to hang. It just sounds similar)**

**RosePetal101: Thank you so much! Compliments make the world go round. Or at least mine, heh.**

**Puckabrinaluver: I think you all are quite amazing, too! The story would be nothing without my readers!**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OCs and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Village Square**

"We can go over who thinks who is hot later. Right now, we have more pressing issues to discuss." Viper stated, saving Jin from what was probably going to be an awkward moment. Jin gathered his wits, and walked towards the steps to the Jade Palace.

"Viper is right. Now that we are all on the same page, maybe we should take this somewhere more private." Jin said, gesturing towards the small crowd, which had grown a bit.

"Very well. Though I am quite enjoying the looks we're getting from the villagers." Su answered, as she and her sisters followed Jin. The masters were not far behind.

As they made their way up the steps, Po could not help but notice the way Tigress was keeping to herself, with her head down, a little behind the rest of them. Nonchalantly slowing down over to her, he nudged her arm. She immediately responded with a growl, but stopped when she saw who it was.

"Oh, Po. Apologies."

"Tigress, what's wrong?"

She looked away for a moment, clearly glaring at Jin.

"Nothings wrong. We've got more help now, the Wu sisters are walking into the palace unhindered, and an insane past-criminal is running the show. Everything's dandy."

Po gave her a knowing look, and laughed a bit at her humor.

"You're the queen of sarcasm, you know that, right?" She chuckled at his remark, and seeing that she had lightened up a bit, Po pressed on. "There we are. That's what I was looking for."

"You're such a goof ball."

"Maybe. But I'm your goof ball." Realizing how that sounded, he quickly stammered out his next sentence. "I- I mean, what I mean to say is-"

Tigress stopped him from embarassing himself further, placing her paw over his mouth.

"I get it, Po. Stop while you're behind." She smiled warmly, and turned her head back towards the others.

_Please don't stop._

Tigress froze for a moment, but when Po inquired, she simply shook her head and kept moving up the stairs.

_What was that? Control yourself, Tigress! You still don't even know what this is..._

Po broke her train of thought, but she didn't quite catch what he said.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"I was asking what you think about Jin. You seem to go back and forth with him. Before you seemed ready to rip his head off, but every once in a while, you're all buddy buddy."

"Oh. He's a strange character, don't you think?" When he nodded, Tigress continued. "He's frustrating, that much is true. But I guess on some level I can relate. He... He confided in me, about something not many would so easily talk about."

"Oh? Secrets, huh?"

"Yes, secrets. No, I won't tell you."

"Oh, come on Tigress! You know how much I love kung fu master history!"

She chuckled at his antics. _Still as young at heart as always._

"If you want to find out, you could ask Jin. He seems to like you well enough."

"Not as much as you, Tigress. He obviously trusts you."

She looked up towards the others ahead on the stairs, watching as Jin and the sisters conversed about who knows what. She saw him look back for a second, smiling when he saw her watching.

"I... I guess so." They were silent for a few seconds, before Tigress noticed something. "Po, you're not getting tired from walking up the stairs."

"Hmm? Oh, yeah. I guess the extra training is paying off, huh?"

"Very much so. How is that going, anyway? The extra training Shifu has been giving you."

"Pretty good. I still haven't mastered this 'absolute offense' yet, though. It's been getting a bit difficult to concentrate."

"What could possibly be breaking your concentration?" She mustered all of the possible sarcasm as she could, putting it into that sentence. "I mean, surely nothing could be on your mind other than training." She smiled a bit, lightly tapping his belly.

"Umm... Yeah! Yeah, food. Let's go with that." He said unconvincingly. He suddenly looked very nervous, and Tigress was about to question him further, when they heard a commotion ahead of them. Apparently, the others had reached the top. And Shifu was rather surprised with who was with them.

**Top of the Stairs**

"Judging by their apathy towards me being here, I take it they are not your prisoners?"

Jin stepped up, past the Wu sisters.

"Yes, Shifu. They are here to help."

"I might also assume that considering your lack of surprise, you planned it this way."

Jin smiled halfheartedly, shuffling his feet a bit.

"Well, you see-" He was stopped when Shifu held up his hand.

"It does not matter. Seeing as they are here, and not hostile, I'd say everything turned out rather well. However..." He looked over to the sisters. "If at any point I believe you have ulterior motives, I will not hesitate to make my suspicions obvious, and decidedly painful. Am I clear?" The sisters nodded, though they all wore smug faces.

"Shifu, if we wanted to make things complicated, I assure you, we would have already."

"Great!" Monkey said, though he began to scratch his head. "I think..."

"Well!" Jin let out a big breath. "What say we go have lunch? I'm starving."

"Did someone say lunch?"

They looked over to the stairs, Tigress and Po had just reached the top. The latter continued speaking.

"I'll get right to it." He moved past them all, but paused a moment and turned towards the sisters. "Uh, are you guys fine with noodles?" They nodded, and Po smiled. "Great! One boatload of noodles comin' right up!"

Shifu sighed, and began making his way to the grotto for meditation.

"Very well. But you are getting to training as soon as you finish. After you all are done, I will speak with the Wu sisters. And-" He was interrupted by his own stomach grumbling. Po laughed a bit.

"You sure you don't want to join us, master? There's plenty."

"I-" His stomach grumbled again, only louder this time. "Fine. I will be with you shortly." He walked out of sight, and the rest of them went to the kitchen.

"So the Dragon Warrior will be serving us food. I never thought that would happen." The younger of the Wu sisters said, eliciting a chuckle from the other two.

"Yes, I think this is a definite first for the criminal world." Su answered, still grinning.

"Speak for yourself." They turned their heads, to see Jin smiling. "I was an assassin, and Po didn't care the slightest bit. He's not exactly the judging type of guy."

Tigress hid a smile, careful not to tip off Jin.

"I can vouch for that."

* * *

**And there we go! How did you like it? Enjoy the fluff moments, perhaps? They won't get too serious for a while, obviously, but you got to take it slow. I hope you enjoyed! Reviews and constructive criticism appreciated as always. And remember, 100th reviewer gets the prize!**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	21. Developments

**Valley of Peace**

"So? How is it?"

Po eagerly awaited the answer, watching them all intently as they took the first spoonful.

"I did something different this time, I want to see how it turned out." He added, looking a bit nervous. The real reason for his behavior was, of course, the fact that some of the greatest kung fu masters were eating his food. While some of them had already had his food, having this many at once was nerve-racking for him.

"It's... rather good. I quite like this." The youngest of the sisters said, Po remembered her name was Wan. The other two were right behind in their answers.

"I have to say, this is impressive." Su said, going for another spoonful.

"As good as I remember."

All eyes went to Wing, her siblings included. She was about to ask why, but then realized what she had said.

"I- I mean of course, that it tastes a lot like another good soup I had once before."

No one looked convinced, and she gave up.

"I was once in the valley before, doing... certain things." She said, looking wary of the masters staring at her. "And I heard that the soup was absolutely divine at this resteraunt. So... I got some. I'd gone back every once in a while for it, but I haven't had the time lately."

"How did I never find out about this? I think I'd know if one of the Wu sisters was coming to my dad's shop regularly."

"Your father is the goose?" After he nodded, she chuckled a bit. "Related or not, you two certainly have things in common. I'd go to the back of the store, and he'd give me some, discreetly. For the right price of course." She added, chuckling again.

The others looked very surprised. One in particular, though.

"Po, your father was serving one of the Wu sisters all this time?!" Tigress directed at Po.

"I didn't know! Believe me! I would have asked him to get an autograph."

Tigress facepalmed.

"That's... Not why I was concerned, Po."

"Maybe... Maybe he didn't know who she was."

"Oh, he knew." Receiving looks from them again, Wing continued. "His exact words were, 'Even master criminals have the right to good food'. He was very nice."

Tigress relaxed a bit, deciding that no harm was techinically done.

_I'm definitely having a few words with that goose, though._

"Tigress?"

Hearing her name, she snapped out of her thoughts, and looked over to Po. The rest had continued their own conversations, already forgetting about what had just happened.

"Yes, Po?"

"It's just... You had that 'I'm gonna kill someone look'. You're not going after my dad, right?"

"I'm not going to hurt him, Po." Po visibly relaxed, but stiffened again when he heard her continue. "I'm just going to have a talk with him."

"Tigress, that's not a good idea."

"And why not? I already told you, I'm not going to hurt him."

"You remember the last time you wanted to have a 'talk' with me? If I recall, It ended decidedly not in my favor."

"Alright, Po. But then you need to talk with him. He can't be doing things like that."

"And how are we all doing?"

With their conversations interrupted, they all looked over to Shifu, who had just entered the room.

"Well enough." Su said. "I think we're all acquainted. And I need to speak with you."

"I agree. Please, if you are done with your food...?"

"Of course." Getting up from her seat, she followed Shifu out of the kitchen. As she was leaving, her sister Wan saw Jin was staring. Following his line of vision, she found what he was so concentrated on.

"Jin, my sister would probably not think too fondly of you staring like that. But if you must, at least stare at her face."

Jin, blushing furiously, began eating again, quick to put his attention on something else. It was too late though, as they had all already had a good laugh at his expense.

**That Night, Barracks**

"This is where you'll all be sleeping. Two of you will have to share a room, as we never expected so much company here." Viper explained, showing the sisters to their rooms, Su obviously taking the single for herself.

"That's fine. But..."

"Yes?"

"By my count, a room is still missing. Where does Jin sleep?"

"Oh, he's an odd one." She said with a half smile. "He likes to sleep on the roof. Don't ask me why."

"I won't. Good night."

Viper nodded, and left the sisters alone in the hallway. Wing and Wan walked to their room, but Wan stopped short, letting her other sister in first.

"Su? Aren't you coming?"

"In a minute. I'm going to check on something first."

She walked out of the barracks, looking up at the roof. She saw Jin there, he was just lying down for the night. Climbing her way up quickly, she made her way over to his side.

"Tigress, I'm actually kind of tired tonight. I'd rather not-" Seeing who it actually was, he shot up into a sitting position.

"Tigress? I'm insulted. And I thought this look was original." She chided, silently laughing at Jin's expression.

"No! No it is. Very original, I mean." He practically shouted, choosing to stop talking before he said something even more unintelligent.

_Not likely._ He thought, silently berating himself already.

"Calm down, smooth operator. I'm not here to make you uncomfortable."

He sighed, moving over a bit, to let her sit down. She accepted, noting as she sat the sheathed blade to her side. She went to pick it up, and heard what sounded almost like a hiss coming from Jin. Holding it up in the moonlight, she began to withdraw it from the sheath.

"I'd rather you didn't." Jin said, prompting her to stop a moment, looking at him. "It's just, that blade is special to me. You're the first person to even touch it in over a decade. Without being torn in half immediately afterwards, anyway."

"Why is it so special? I can see that it is very finely crafted, a brilliant weapon. But why?"

"Let's just say we've been through a lot together, saw some things. That blade is the only thing that stayed with me through it all."

She gingerly laid it back down, much to Jin's relief.

"I see."

A few quiet moments passed, neither of them quite sure how to proceed.

"Why are you up here, anyway?" Su asked, breaking the silence.

"For the great view, of course." He noted her look. "Not satisfied?"

"Not even a little."

"I've spent many a night camped out on rooftops. They eventually became more comfortable than a bed to me." He explained. "But somehow I doubt that is all you came up here to ask about."

"And you are right. My sisters told me about what happened earlier."

"Oh?" Seeing her expression, he realized what she was talking about. "Oh..."

"It's fine, Jin. I don't really care. You're not the first to give me a second glance."

"That's a relief." Su raised a brow. "The bit about the not caring, I mean."

"That's all then, I'll be getting to bed now." She stood up, and began walking away, towards the edge. "But Jin?"

Hearing this, he focused his attention back to her.

"My sister was right. If you must, at least try to stare at my face." And with Jin turning about eight different colors of red, she jumped off.

Left to himself now, he laid back, still reeling from her words.

"Damn..."

**Enemy Base Camp**

"Sir? We've received word from the have reported that they have reached the valley."

"Good, good. And Jin?"

"They are shadowing him. Apparently the job has become slightly more complicated."

"Hmm?"

"Three more have joined him at the palace. They can't easily get him alone."

Amadus sighed. Shaking his head, he walked out of the room, with the commander close behind.

"Sir?"

Ignoring him, he continued to make his way to the center of the camp. When he finally stopped, the commander stood beside him, still confused.

"I fear the two may not be able to complete their mission."

"Because of the new people? Sir, I'm sure they will be able to get past that. You trained them yourself, along with all the others in the program."

Amadus turned, a small glare eminent, making the commander cower slightly.

"That's what you think? Naive fool. I did not train them all personally. The majority had special trainers, for each pair. One teacher for two children, that's why the sisters were allowed to stay together."

"Then... Jin has a partner? I never knew."

"That's because he didn't have one. Jin is the only one I ever trained personally, and I never gave him a partner. I focused on just him. His natural fighting skills needed to be honed, and depending on another wouldn't have helped."

"So, can the two sisters beat him?"

"I highly doubt it, not if it were a fair fight."

"Then why send them?"

"I said if it were a fair fight, he'd win. It won't be."

"Why is that?"

"Because hopefully, he won't want to hurt them. The three of them were rather close during their time in the program. But the sisters... They will not have the same restraint."

"I... I don't understand."

"They wouldn't betray their father."

**Jade Palace**

"Well? She's left him. This will likely be our best chance."

"I know. Let's do this."

Two shadows leapt from the darkness, towards their sleeping target.


	22. Meddlers on the Roof

**Here we are again. Sorry for this slightly late update, but for the last few days, I've been uncharacteristically tired. Exhausted, really. Not that I'm usually a barrel of energy, but not quite this lethargic. A thank you to one of my faithful readers, who showed her concern. Yes, I'm fine. I don't think I had the flu, but oh well. Thank you again for the concern. A few comment replies as usual, and to the story. Oh, and when you reach the fight scene, (yes, there is one) I suggest listening to Skillet. Helps set the mood, I feel.**

**The Pizza Man: No, you can't review twice to get it. Seeing as how guests are the only ones who can do that. You're supposed to be limited to one review per chapter, so...**

**Awesome: As for explaining, Ain't nobody got time for dat!**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: Thanks for your continued support! Love ya!**

**Christ's Disciple: I guess you'll find out soon enough. And no, no hints. What good would a riddle be, if you got hints? However, there is no time limit for this contest. This could be open until long after the sequel starts, as long as somebody guesses it, they get a one-shot.**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OCs and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Barracks Roof**

Jin had just closed his eyes, and begun to rest, when his ears perked up. Sighing in annoyance, he sat back up, and held a paw to his head.

"If you must, please just do it already. I'm very tired, and I'd like to get some sleep in tonight."

The two sisters jumped down to the roof, making sure not to make too much noise to wake the ones inside. Standing across from him, they assumed fighting stances.

"I see being a traitor hasn't dampened your abilities, Jin."

Jin laughed at that, finally getting up to his feet.

"If that's what you call doing the right thing these days, I would like to hope that I'm the most traiterous bastard the world has ever seen." He stopped a moment, gazing at the dark silhouettes standing a few yards from him. "Well, if it isn't my two favorite people. I knew they'd send someone after me eventually. Wasn't expecting you."

"Why not? If you remember our days in the program, we were second best to none." The younger sister piped up, stepping slightly into the light that the moon was providing, her older sibling close behind.

"I think you're forgetting someone in that assessment."

"Who? You? You were just teacher's pet. You always pretended to care about everyone else, up until the last couple of years. You became cold, Jin. As hard and calculating as our father."

"Don't you dare compare me to that cretin you call a person." Jin growled, face growing into a scowl.

"Oh, did we strike a nerve?" The older sister jested. "You know, on our way here, we weren't sure about doing this. Then we both realized something."

"Pray tell, what epiphany did you have?" Jin snidely remarked.

"We realized that during all our time in the academy, you only ever looked out for yourself. And now we do the same."

They jumped at him, drawing small knives from their person. Cursing slightly under his breath, Jin had to back off a few feet, away from his blade. They both took turns slashing at him, making him retreat further and further, until he had reached the end of his rope. Glancing behind him, Jin saw there was no more roof to walk on to.

"You know, I could easily just call for help. I've got more than a few masters who be more more than glad to kick some butt. They haven't been able to punch anyone lately, and something tells me they're itching."

"Yes, but you won't. You've always been one for his pride, Jin. Without that, what are you?"

Jin smiled, momentarily catching the sisters off guard.

"What am I?" He straightened up, clenching his fists. He stared at the sisters, and they saw his eyes practically glow with determination.

"I'm a badass."

He dashed forward, knocking one sister of her feet, almost sending her off the roof. The other turned and attempted to cut him in the side, but he stopped her wrist halfway, immobilizing her arm. The other sister recovered, and seeing her sibling in trouble, threw her knife at Jin, hoping to surprise him.

Keeping his lock on the girl, he used his other hand to catch the weapon, and twisting with the sister in his hand, redirected the knife back at her. With fluid movements, he uppercutted the one he was holding on to, sending her into the air. When he put his attention back on the girl he had thrown the knife at, he saw it wedged in her shoulder, as she cradled the wound, wincing.

They reformed on each other, standing side to side, in an effort to keep Jin at bay. He backed up a bit, making them think their tactic was working. Until they saw what he was walking towards.

Crouching down, he picked up the weapon, still where it was from earlier.

_"Darkbringer" _The sisters whispered in unison, as Jin unsheathed it, letting the black steel drop to his side.

"You know its name? The few times we saw each other, I never mentioned it."

"We've heard the stories, Jin. Everyone there had."

"What stories? I was never aware of them."

"How could you not be?"

"I didn't think there could be any. After all, stories require something pretty vital."

"What's that?"

Jin flashed his signature smirk, sword at the ready.

"Stories require someone to have survived to tell the tale."

**Inside Barracks**

"Did you guys hear that?" Asked Mantis, poking his head through his door.

"What?" Tigress replied, slightly peeved at being disturbed.

"I thought I heard something from the roof. Sounded like pained voices, and thumps."

"Mantis, if you don't go back to sleep, and leave me the hell alone, I'm going to kill you."

**Roof**

The two sisters lay next to each other, both bruised and having sustained more than a few attacks, courtesy Jin's blade. The sun was just beginning to show on the horizon.

Their breath was ragged, and they were clearly weak.

"Why don't you-" The older sister hacked violently into her arm. "Why don't you finish it, then?" She spat, venom dripping from her words.

"Please, don't be such a drama queen. You'll both be fine. I didn't hit anything vital, and that was on purpose, if you were wondering." Jin replied, using his cloak to wipe some blood off his sword. "I don't want to kill you, contrary to apparent popular belief. Whether you hold the same feelings or not, I did care for you both during our time together."

"What lies!" She tried to scream, but it came out barely a whisper. "If you cared, why did you never even attempt to contact us after the program was finished? All that time, and not even once did you try!"

"Your father always said you didn't want to be contacted. And besides, even if I didn't care what Amadus said, he was the only one who would know your whereabouts."

"Our father... No, he wouldn't do that."

"You're deluding yourself. You must know the kind of person he was."

"I..."

"It doesn't even matter. I suggest you leave, and stay far from here for the next couple of weeks. It's going to get a bit dicey. Return to Amadus, or leave altogether, I don't care. I'm giving you this final chance, in lieu of our childhood together. Past that, you get nothing. Understood?" He said, more like a statement than a question.

The sister nodded, slinging her sibling over her shoulder, and using what little energy she had left, dropped off the roof, leaving Jin by his lonesome again, and for the final time that night.

"Thank you." He muttered to himself, laying down on his makeshift bed.

"Sweet, merciful sleep..."

_Gong!_

The Five and Po were at their doors immediately, with the Wu sisters drowsily waking, wondering what the racket was for. One thing they all heard though, was what followed before Shifu had a chance to greet them all.

_"Oh, for the love of!"_

* * *

**Another one bites the dust. And another fight scene, too. Review if you liked it, review if you don't. Just be constructive, yeah?**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	23. Failures And Screw Ups

**And here we all are, almost a week later. Sorry for my absence, stuff to do, so little time to do it. I've also been a little sick these past few days, it's been a bit hard to concentrate on much of anything. I'm feeling better now, though, so here's a new chapter! Also, to those who missed it, my One-Shot for the winner of the 100 review was posted a few days ago. You can find it through my profile. To the replies, and onward to victory! I mean, the chapter. Right...**

**The Pizza Man: You may not have been the 100th reviewer, but you can still get the one shot! Riddle is still unsolved. Though, I'm beginning to doubt if anyone will get it. Oh well.**

**Em: Thank you for liking my story! It wouldn't have amounted to anything, had no one read it, so my readers are just as responsible for it as I am!**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: I aim for great, so I guess spot on, huh?**

**Puckabrinaluver: I enjoy writing humor, so there will be plenty. I hope you find awesomeness in this chapter, too.**

**TheBlazingK: I really try to keep them all right, as far as personalities go, so I'm glad you think I did well.**

**Christ's Disciple: I kinda feel bad, making Jin so unlucky. He's beginning to seem like the guy I'd want to be, were I in this story.**

**Smiles1998: No, no he can't. This chapter is no exception.**

** : While I very much doubt this is the best story on the site, I am very happy to hear that you think so highly of it.**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OCs and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Barracks**

They all rushed outside, having heard's Jin's outburst. After they reached him, though, they were shocked to find him simply laying down, with spatters of blood all around.

"Jin? Are you okay?" Tigress asked, amidst the confusion. He nodded, and she lost the concern in her voice. "Then what the hell happened up here?!"

Jin winced, her voice was grating on his ears.

"Can you be quieter? I didn't get much sleep, and I think I drank one too many bottles last night."

"I don't find this amusing." Shifu said, not quite glaring, but still obviously not happy. "Would you mind explaining?" He gestured to the blood stains, still very fresh.

"Oh. That." Jin sat up, rubbing the side of his head. "Did you guys know, you're very heavy sleepers?"

"Don't be ridiculous. We've been trained to wake at the slightest disturbance."

"Then I guess a full blown assassination attempt doesn't fall under slight disturbance, then?"

Their eyes grew wide, again looking around at the roof, but now with realization. Po looked a bit jittery.

"You mean someone tried to kill you last night?" He asked, and Jin nodded. "Where'd they go?"

"What makes you so sure there's anything left?"

A few gasps came from the group, and Jin began laughing.

"You... Totally..." He was still too hysterical to get a complete sentence out. He calmed down a little, and wiped a few tears out of his eyes. "You guys totally fell for it! You should have seen the looks on your faces!"

"That's not funny!" Tigress growled. Jin, hearing her tone, sobered up enough to keep a straight face.

"Apologies, of course it wasn't. I guess I'm still a little lightheaded, from the lack of sleep."

"Then, where did he go?" Po asked again, silently hoping for a less bloody answer this time.

"She, and they. Two... past colleagues of mine. It doesn't matter, though. They won't be bothering me, or you guys anytime soon."

"How can you be sure?"

"Trust me."

**Enemy Base Camp**

"Sir, word from the soldiers. Apparently your daughters have returned."

Amadus shifted in his chair, turning his attention to the commander.

"Good, good." He followed him out, and saw the two leopardesses making their way through the camp. One was limping, and holding onto the other for support. Both were badly hurt, and would obviously need medical attention.

"Medic! We need assistance over-"

"No." Amadus intterupted his second in command, glaring at the two all the while.

"Sir? They need help."

"The _failures _ will help themselves."

The two sisters reached them, and out of breath, they collapsed at their feet.

"I'm sorry, father. We couldn't..." Nells said weakly, her strength having left the second they fell.

"I can see that, insolent child. How did this happen?"

"He was too fast, there was nothing we could do."

"You could have killed him!" Amadus exploded, everyone near cowered back at the sound of his anger. "Was that not an option?! He shouldn't have wanted to harm you..."

"What do you mean?" She was fighting to keep herself conscious now.

"From your past, he shouldn't have wanted to hurt you... unless..." He looked down at her, his anger gone. In fact, all emotions had drained from his face, and he stared with dead eyes. "Unless you provoked him."

"I..."

"What did you say to him?"

"We... may have compared him to you, father."

"That... that would do it." He scowled, and left them there on the ground, walking away. "Commander, please ready your finest men."

"Are we going somewhere, my lord?"

"Yes. If they were not able to eliminate Jin, then we must. He's a liability now, and has to be captured and taken from the picture."

"What of the other army, their numbers are growing. Still not enough to stop us, but it has me worried."

"Don't be. Once we've taken away their glorious symbols for victory, that is, Jin and China's so called masters, they'll have nothing."

"Then where are you going, sir? Your tent is the other way."

Amadus turned, and grinned wickedly. The soldiers around instinctively hissed, and backed off, upon seeing the unnatural smile.

"It's time I show these imbeciles exactly who they're so foolishly opposing."

**Jade Palace Kitchen**

"Now that we have that out of the way." Shifu said, as he sat down at the head of the table. "We may discuss what we have planned."

"Actually, I've been meaning to ask about that. What exactly did you two speak about last night?" Viper inquired, looking at both Shifu and Su.

"Su informed me of some very encouraging news. Would you like the honors?"

"Thank you." Nodding graciously to Shifu, Su addressed the rest of them at the table, waiting to gain Po's attention, as he was still preparing food at the stove. Once he turned, she continued. "I'm afraid we have been in knowledge of the current threat much longer than you. Over the past few months, we've been ammassing as many troops as we could, though their number is still not enough for a victory."

"You mean we actually have an army? Well, that's better than we've usually got going for us." Mantis retorted, smiling beside himself.

"And where exactly, have these troops been coming from?" Tigress asked. "Last I checked, the country wasn't on alert. Where did the volunteers come from?"

"Mostly bandits, a few mercenary groups here and there."

"You mean to tell me our army is made up of thugs, and criminal scum?Tigress asked, her disbelief showing.

"Hey, watch your words, Tigress." Jin said, smiling. "Sticks and stones may not break my bones, but they certainly sting."

"Jin is right, we must focus on the task at hand." Shifu said, deciding to speak before an argument arose. "While this newfound luck helps, it is still not enough. Jin's plan still stands. There are others we need to _recruit_, as it were."

"What, we're not enough?" Su asked, not actually being serious, but her face didn't show her humor, unfortunately for Jin.

"No, you're certainly enough..."

Everyone looked over to Jin, who looked around confused, until his eyes went wide.

"I said that out loud, huh?"

* * *

**Another chapter gone, another day goes by. Hope you enjoyed, and as always, feel free to review and tell me if you liked it. Constructive criticism is appreciated, and see you all later.**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	24. Unwelcome Death

**Here it is. A rather emotional chapter in some regards, but I kinda like how it came out. I won't spoil any surprises, but I may lose some of you with this. I hope not, but you never know. I need to stop writing while listening to Hollywood Undead. Probably a bad habit. Anyway, a few replies, and we're off.**

**TheBlazingK: Yes, yes he is.**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: Yes, yes it was. lol**

**Christ's Disciple: I didn't skip the rambling part, because you told me to at the end of it. Sounds fishy, if you ask me.**

**The Pizza Man: I was wondering if anyone would catch on to that. Thankfully you did, yes he was drunk. I wasn't originally planning on that, but when I was imagining the fight, Jin looked drunk for some reason. And so I made him drunk.**

**Puckabrinaluver: Not sure if any readers know this, but when a review says that they don't want to rush you, you feel rushed to get a new one out. Here's hoping there's awesomeness in this chapter as well. lol**

**Smiles1998: I'm sure anyone other than Jin would agree. He'd probably just hit you. Killjoy...**

**Awesome: You will need an account to PM me and give me the details. I've never really thought about taking requests, but if I like your idea well enough I don't see why not.**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OCs and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Jade Palace Kitchen**

"So who's next, if you don't mind me asking?"

Shifu turned to Crane, then around at the table's occupants.

"As I'm sure you'll all be grateful for, the Wu sisters are the first and last criminals on the list. Which is growing shorter, I'm afraid."

Jin raised a brow at this, and his face showed his confusement.

"What do you mean? Surely the others haven't denied to help us?"

"No, nothing like that. But a few... We've recently lost contact with some of the Masters' Council."

"Lost contact? How exactly?"

"I had been relaying several messages since this ordeal started, and most were enthusiastic in joining our little crusade. But many have stopped replying, and I fear the worst."

"He was beginning to target some of China's leaders. No one too big, lest he cause an alert. I guess he stepped up his plans after I left." Jin looked down at the table, one of his arms holding his head up. "How many are dead?"

"We don't know if they have truly been los-"

"How many?" Jin's interruption caused them all to see his grave face, and they all knew any sort of rescue attempt would be for naught.

"Six of the Council are quiet."

It took them all a moment to let this news sink in. A wave of hopelessness washed over the room, leaving not the slightest sliver of wishful thinking.

"But..." Viper began speaking, still only above a whisper. "There are only ten masters in the Council."

"I know."

After about a minute of grieving, Jin spoke up.

"Of course." Shifu replied. "The remaining members have all been informed to make their way here, they will arrive in a few short days."

"How is it so quiet?" They all turned to see Tigress, fists clenched tight. "How have so many died, but no one is yet aware?"

"I think I can answer that." Jin's eyes were again diverted to the table, reflecting everyone's mood. "The ones reponsible for the deaths, were most likely others from the program. They are the only ones I know who can do something like this, without gaining attention."

"I'm sorry, program? What program?" Monkey asked, most of them looked curious, Tigress and Shifu excluded. But one of them knew more than the other.

"The one that made me who I am today. But that doesn't matter, the fact that they are killing our defense, is a problem I intend to solve." He got up from the table, aiming to walk out the door. Picking up his cloak from the wall he quickly donned it, and checked his blade at his side. Before he reached the door, he stopped when one of them asked where he was going.

"To visit some old classmates."

**Road From Gongmen To The Valley**

"So what do you think? Of this army we're facing?" Master Croc asked his companion, as they walked on.

"It will no doubt be one of our hardest battles. From what Shifu tells us, his informant, this 'Jin' character, has spoken of an army much too large to defeat conventionally."

Before he went on, they both stopped, looking around at the trees either side.

"Ambush!" He cried out, and they both barely dodged a volley of arrows that would have surely ended them, had they not moved.

"How many?"

"I'm not sure, keep your guard up!"

Two shadows, one from either side of the road slowly walked up to the pair. Croc watchem them suspiciously, trying to see past their silhouettes.

"Well, I suppose that answers that question. Who are you?"

"Our names would have no meaning to you, but yours are quite well known, I hear."

"A little too well known." The second shadow responded in kind.

"What exactly do you want?"

Both of the lurking figures crouched into fighting stances.

"To make your names famous for a different reason."

They both struck out, swords in hand.

**Edge of The Valley**

"Jin, wait!"

He turned around, and saw Tigress running to catch up.

"What? You're not stopping me."

She reached him, and looked him dead in the eye.

"I'm not, am I? Jin, you can't do this."

"I most certainly can."

"That's not what I meant, and you know it." She saw him cast his eyes downward for a moment, and decided to push it further. "You turned away from this, remember? Death is behind you."

"Death may be behind me, but only because it will never stop following me. I must do this, Tigress. Before more innocent lives are lost. I will correct the mistake that was the program, until there is no trace, and no person to speak of it."

"Including you?"

Her question caught him off guard, and he stared blankly. He gathered his thoughts, and thought for a minute. Just when she began to think he was coming around, he uttered a few words.

"If that is what it takes."

With that, he ran off into the forest, faster than she could follow. With a final glance at his retreating form, she walked back to the palace.

**Road From Gongmen**

A few minutes later, it was done. They pushed the broken bodies to the side of the road, leaving no trace.

"And then there were two."

* * *

**Wonder how many people were shocked at how that ended? I can practically hear the collective gasps. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed, and as usual, reviews and constructive criticism are appreciated.**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	25. I Will Not Fail

**Hey, guys. As you may have noticed, this chapter is a bit shorter than the previous ones, but it's all in preparation. I'll let you try to figure out for what. On another note, this story has officially reached 10k views! Huzzah! You're all great, and remember it's you that made this story happen. Without your support and kind reviews, this would have most likely never made it past chapter 2. So I sincerely thank you for that. We'll get to some replies, and then on to the chapter!**

**TheBlazingK: Jin... Will most likely kill them, not gonna lie.**

**Smiles1998: I was going for that, so I'm glad to hear you think I succeeded!**

**Cindz Cindz: His companion was Ox, as they're both partners. Not gonna say any more...**

**Johnny-Boy: I'm glad you found it too!**

**Puckabrinaluver: It's okay, being rushed just means I have to work harder, which is something I need.**

**The Pizza Man: I suggest you reread the end of the last chapter, see if you find anything suspicious. And... there are no words for that last part of your review, lol.**

**Awesome: How could I?! Like that.**

**Christ's Disciple: You must worry for the sake of all! Mwahahaha... Or something like that. And I know what you did, I was just joking at your expense, lol.**

**TheStarsShadow15: You had a lot to say, so for the sake of space I just PM'd you some details. Thanks for the review!**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: From your inherent happiness, I assume you saw what really happened in the last chapter. :)**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OCs, and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Road From Gongmen**

"Seriously? You're going to make jokes after that?"

Croc turned to Ox, a wide smile splitting his face.

"And why not? They were much too self confident. Besides, if they got a cool one-liner, why can't I?"

"This isn't funny. Those two were very skilled, we almost didn't get out of there alive." Ox said, shaking his head all the while. "Well, we'd better get going again. Shifu will want us there as soon as possible, and there may be more assassins along the way."

"Yeah." Croc agreed, "And I want to meet this Jin."

Ox nodded, and taking one last lingering look at the bodies beside the road, they continued forward.

**Jade Palace**

"You guys don't think Jin's about to go and... _kill_ more people, do you?" Mantis choked out. Jin had since left about five minutes ago, and they were all a bit wary of the possibilities, considering how he'd left. Tigress jumping up after him didn't help.

"I don't know, but we must not dwell too long on what _may_ happen, and focus on what we know will." Shifu interluded, before anyone else had a chance to speak. "We must trust that Jin makes the right decision. In the meantime, thanks to the Wu sisters," he nodded in their direction, "We have a constant source of information on the enemy army. Su?"

"Yes, if our current information holds, the army has reached a rather daunting level. We don't have exact numbers, but it's more than our current band of mercs can handle." Su explained.

"Yes, about that." Crane began speaking. "How can we trust them to fight for us, and not just run or turn on us if the tides change?"

"I've explained to them all the risks, and they know the other army wouldn't accept their help anyway."

"Why is that?"

"The enemy is comprised entirely of snow leopards, and that doesn't seem like a fashion statement."

"Yes, Jin did mention that where he comes from, the people have been known to not take kindly to strangers." Viper thought aloud. "Tigress!"

They turned towards the doorway, finding Tigress had just returned.

"Where did Jin go?" Mantis asked, hoping he didn't already know the answer.

"He..." She began, at a loss for words. She quickly regained her composure, and told them all.

"He left."

**With Jin, Unknown Forest**

He sped through the brush, just a black blur of his cloak amongst the green. He hadn't slowed down since leaving the Valley, only having looked back a few times to see if Tigress was following him.

_Yeah, that's why._ He mentally cursed at this train of thought, convincing himself of his actions. _No, that was the only reason._ Once again his mind strayed, and he paused in his stride, stopping to bang his head against a nearby tree.

"Damn it!" Slamming his fist into the tree, practically cracking it in two, he gripped his sword handle, looking for strength in his memories. "I'm a mercenary, nothing more, nothing less." He repeated that until his head swam with doubt.

He began walking, moving faster with each passing second.

_You have no friends._

He reached his previous pace, still gaining speed.

_You have no family._

Trees became a blur, though that may have been from the tears staining his face.

_You deserve nothing, but the sorrow you have caused others._

His body became strained through the effort, but his mind stayed focused on his objective.

_But you will succeed._

* * *

**So yes, a bit shorter than I would have liked, but I spent a lot of time getting that last bit to sound just right. I hope you felt chills and really saw the scene unfold in your head, as that was what I was trying to accomplish. As always, reviews and constructive criticism are welcome.**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	26. Distractions

**Sorry for the short absence, there was just some stuff I had to take care of. What makes it worse, is that I already had a few chapters written up, so I have no excuse, really. But I'm updating now, and that's what matters, right?**

**...**

**Yeah, I'll update faster from now on. A few comment replies, and then the new chapter.**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: Before he goes mad? Me thinks a little late for that, my good friend.**

**TheBlazingK: It's not so much that Jin doesn't have friends, it's more that he doesn't see the need for any. Considering how his life started...**

**Christ's Disciple: I live to make you all worry, lol. And if THAT made you worry, oh boy...**

**Smiles1998: I am so glad it worked, since I spent like four hours just on that portion of the chapter, trying to make it perfect.**

**Puckabrinaluver: Well, remember that they only barely won. These guys from Jin's past are not to be trifled with. Unfortunately for them, Jin is the epitome of badass, so...**

**The Pizza Man: Well, your reviews are certainly the most fun to read. I never know what you're going to write.**

**Anyway, let's get on with it!**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OCs and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Jade Palace**

"So, what exactly is our game plan? Do we even have one, other than just stop them?" Asked Mantis, the incredulous tones only too apparent in his words.

"Of course we do." Shifu answered, bringing a map to the table, and spreading it over the top.

"That's China."

"Yes, it is. Thank you for that enlightening piece of wisdom, Mantis."

Mantis shrugged it off, and continued to stare at the map, which had several lines and landmarks drawn over it in red. Seeing that his comments had ceased, Shifu started speaking again.

"As you may have noticed, Su and I spent some time last night attempting to formulate a plan. From what her spies have told her, the army is currently gathered here." He pointed to an area secluded by several mountains. "A frontal attack, even if we had an advantage in number, would undoubtedly fail. It's much too well protected."

"But the valley can also be used to our advantage." Tigress interluded, as she focused on the mountains surrounding the area in question. "An ambush from the high ground."

"That is what we thought as well." Shifu said, stroking his beard. "The only problem is the watchtowers." He once again gestured to the map, this time to the marks illustrating watchtowers. "They're obviously there to keep that very idea from success. However, they're only make-shift, and with very few guards to each of them. Coordinated strikes could take them out with fairly little struggle."

"There is also the problem of getting our army up the mountain." Su stated, gaining their attention, though Tigress noticed Su's seemed to be elsewhere. "Watchtowers or not, an army is pretty hard to not notice traversing up the side of a cliff." She finished, trying to concentrate on the strategies.

"Is there something you'd rather be doing, Su?" Tigress asked, not so full of sarcasm as it was actual curiousity.

"W-What?" Su's eyes snapped up off the map. "What do you mean?" Her sisters giggled at her side, but a cold glare in their direction shut them up quickly.

"Nevermind, it doesn't matter." Tigress said, resetting her focus to the map.

The conversation went on for another hour or two, before Shifu dismissed them to their training, the sisters excluded, of course. Though Wing and Wan decided to go and watch anyway, as they had nothing better to do. Su stayed behind, aimlessly walking around the palace grounds. She found herself at the barracks, and jumped up on top without thinking.

She sat down, and looked over the valley. She glanced to her side, and saw a few faded blood stains.

"Looks like you didn't clean up well, Jin." She said to no one in particular, allowing a small chuckle to escape her mouth.

She stared into the distance, trying to see past the sun rise, possibly to find answers. Sighing, she resigned to simply not knowing them all.

"Be safe."

**With Jin**

"Wastes of space." He muttered under his breath, cleaning off his blade. He calmly strode past the mess, walking up to the now terrified goose family in the corner. "You should be safe now. I doubt they'll send any more."

They all nodded quickly and quietly, still cowering in fear. Jin simply laughed, and left the house of the noble family. On his way, he had accepted his fate, knowing there wouldn't be a day when he wasn't feared. Instead of thinking of it as horrible, he decided to take it with pride.

_Still a few more out there. _He thought, taking another look at his map. A few would be easy to guess, several people had been taken out, and it was not hard to find the pattern. He flinched as he remembered their faces. It was hard not to. Those that he had spent so much of his life with, the only ones he truly knew as people, and he was tasked with _removing_ them.

"It's their fault." He said to himself, attracting a few odd stares from the crowd around him as he walked through the market. He ignored them, and continued forward to his next destination. "They made the decision."

It was too difficult. His mind couldn't keep itself distracted well enough. He could live with being feared, he had gotten over that. But the few people who he could live with...

"I need to let off some steam."

He heard a commotion off to his left, and saw a few wolf bandits robbing an old couple of pigs. He was going to just pass on by, he didn't think they'd be enough. But then he saw one of their faces.

He walked over, smiling as wide as he could, though his hood masked it. There was an almost menacing peace about him, as he approached. The familiar wolf looked up, and his face immediately blanked.

"What's wrong?" Jin asked. "You look as though you've seen a ghost."

"I-I..."

"Something got your tongue? You know, at least your timing has improved since I last saw you. I really needed this." Jin cracked his knuckles, and his smile grew wider.

* * *

**Yeah... That wolf is not going to have a great day, is he? Tell me if you liked it, tell me if you didn't, but remember the rule: Constructive Criticism!**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	27. Startling Discoveries

**Hello, everybody! Please don't kill me. I know I said I'd get this chapter and following chapters out sooner, and clearly I'm an idiot. No arguments need to be made, I'm stone cold stupid. I sincerely apologize, and hope that this chapter can be viewed in some way as being recompense. So, lets get to some replies.**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: Of course, thank you. You always know how to make me feel better. :)**

**Pandamaster97720: I will go on! Promise.**

**Puckabrinaluver: You're supposed to feel bad, so that's okay. Sorry about this late update.**

**Smiles1998: Yes, yes he is. And yes, so it is. :)**

**The Pizza Man: Yes it was that wolf. I'll see you later, too. Though I suppose that's now, in context...**

**Christ's Disciple: I should, should I?**

**TheBlazingK: Jin is a rather troubled leopard, hehe. As for the PxT moments, that's for me to know and you to find out later!**

**14HaLfBeAsT14: Just like I am okay with there being religious people in the world. Isn't tolerance one of religion's big things, anyway?**

**Now that that's over, let's get on with it!**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OCs and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Enemy Base Camp**

"Everything is prepared, sir. We are ready to move."

Amadus smirked. He was all too ready to begin, he hadn't had any field work in years.

"Also, sir, we have reports of Jin's whereabouts. He was last seen near one of our operative teams. We've also lost contact with several other teams. I think he is taking them out, sir.

"He most definitely is, commander. But that also means he isn't anywhere near the Jade Palace."

_This is going to be fun._ He thought, once again smirking.

"Alright then, commander. Have the men move out, I will be joining you shortly." He remarked offhand, not truly paying any mind to his surroundings. He was far too focused on what would be coming.

_Either I kill them and China is mine, or I don't kill them, and China is still mine. Oh, the possibilities. So exciting._ He cackled happily, not noticing the looks from the soldiers walking past.

**Jade Palace Barracks Roof**

"Who are you talking to?"

Su spun around in surprise, but calmed down when she saw Tigress behind her.

"Do you normally sneak up on allies during private moments?" She stared Tigress down, though the latter seem unaffected.

"Careful with the term ally. In my opinion, that is something one must earn."

"Have I not proved my worth? I can take my army elsewhere."

"And then you would lose elsewhere." Tigress stopped, catching herself before this got bigger. "Look, I just wanted to talk."

"And why would I want to listen?" Su answered back, her tone deadset.

"Because you're obviously as worried about Jin as I am."

That caught Su off guard, her mouth gaping a little, not making any intelligible sounds.

"I assure you, I have no idea what you are talking about." She finally managed to get out, before she seemed inept.

"Be safe?" Tigress said, and her smirk grew all the wider seeing Su's reaction. "I haven't known you all that long, and I may not be an expert in all things romance," She said, remembering her and Jin's uncomfortable conversation, "But I know a lovestruck fool when I see one."

"I..." Su began, but couldn't find it in herself to finish the sentence. She decided to resort to tried and true methods. Threats. "Back off. This is none of your business."

"You're right, it's not. We're still having this discussion regardless."

"What is it to you, anyway?" Su's glare couldn't seem to phase Tigress, but it wasn't for lack of trying.

"I met Jin not too long ago, and not under the greatest circumstances. Yet within that span of time, he's already become a friend. He clearly gets under one's fur quickly."

"And?" Su's gaze had diverted to the rooftop, in lieu of not having any ground to stare at.

"I protect my friends. I just need to know you have his and our best interests at heart, as a team and as allies." Tigress raised a brow after she finished, waiting for the response.

There was a minute without speaking, neither uttering a word nor moving a muscle. The silence was deafening, as it fell upon both their ears.

"I promise."

Tigress' eyes grew wide, not having expected such a response. Sure, a yes, or some other encouraging words, but a promise? Su interrupted her thought process, as she spoke again.

"My promises are not to be taken lightly, _Master _Tigress. I'm sure you know that." She stood up, locking eyesight with the tiger in front of her. "Am I free to go, now?"

Tigress simply nodded, satisfied with how the conversation went. She watched Su jump off, and walk towards the training hall.

_Probably to join her sisters._ She turned towards the valley, seeing the sun wash over the unsuspecting village below.

"Well, Jin. Now you have to come back alive." She said, knowing there was no one within earshot.

"You've got someone waiting for you."

**With Jin**

"Any last words?"

The snow leopard didn't say anything. He just sat there on his knees, staring at the body of his partner some feet away.

"Nothing?" Jin chuckled. "Here I was hoping for some lasting piece of wisdom. You are after all, one of my last targets."

He looked up hearing this, eyes wide with fear.

"You... You've killed them all?" He asked with a shaky voice. Jin nodded, and the leopard's shoulders slumped as he resumed his attention to his partner's body. "How could you have done this..."

"Simple really, I'm better than all of you."

"Not that!" He spat. "How could you have killed what used to be your family?"

"I once had a family." Jin said, his glare had increased at hearing that word. The leopard in front of him felt his blood run cold, he instantly regretted looking. "But it was taken from me, by the likes of your master. He stuck me with all of you, thinking that would suffice any need I had. He was wrong."

"Our master..." The leopard flashed a grin. He stared up into Jin's eyes, one last look of defiance. "You've already lost, you know. You may have stood a chance against him, but your friends..."

Jin felt _his_ blood run cold this time.

"They will all d-"

Jin stopped the sentence short, by way of blade, and had already started running.

"No..."

* * *

**Oh, the drama! Drama everywhere! Tell me how you liked it please, or if you didn't, tell me anyways. Reviews and constructive criticism are appreciated.**

**Oh, and my brother wrote a small story, and wanted me to post it on this here website. So it's now on my author page. A warning, it is not associated with my writing, or KFP. I'm sure he'd like it if you read it, and reviewed.**

**Ta Ra!**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	28. A Meeting In Fire

**Again, apologies for the late update. I had actually lost a bit of the will to write, but never fear, I am back on track. Just needed a bit of motivation, is all. Also, I will be updating a previous chapter in this story. I think it was chapter 11. Anyway, it was the one where I introduced Po's new ability, absolute offense. I'm getting rid of that. I came up with the idea some time ago, before I even started the story, on the premise that is there was an absolute defense, why not the opposite. I love the idea, but unfortunately I don't think it fits in with this story. It seemed haphazard, and not very well implemented into the plot. I may do something with it later, but for now, I will edit that chapter and essentially remove it. I won't just delete the chapter, I will of course change it, and maybe add something else. I am sorry for those who also liked the idea, but I don't think it worked well in that chapter. It will be updated soon enough, I'm hoping to have the revised chapter done within the next few days. So look out for that, since it won't appear in your updated list. I am just modifying, it won't be counted as new content. **

**To those that are reading this story at a much later date, you probably have no idea what I'm talking about. Perhaps when you are reading this, the story has been completed for years and I am no longer writing. I just invented textual time travel. Oh yeah, innovating all over the place. Anyways, enough of that, let's get to some comment replies, and to the next chapter.**

**P.S. For those who were angry at me for leaving you at a cliffhanger last time, I suggest you don't read this chapter. It may be detrimental to your health.**

**Guest: Twists and turns are great, they're fun to write, and they generally temporarily anger some readers. Fun.**

**Smiles1998: Again, I always try to get the readers to feel what's happening, so, great! And Jin is the very model of modesty. You're ****all**** just not good enough to see his awesomeness for what it is. :) (Jin asked me to say that for him)**

**Puckabrinaluver: I think somewhere, deep down, even Su thought it was funny. Everyone has to appreciate comedic timing.**

**Simba593: Can't wait to give you more! Wait, I just did that... For a week... Uhm...**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: Golden high it is, then!**

**The Pizza Man: Again, there seems to be no limit to the wonder that is your comment.**

**Christ's Disciple: You're one of the people I meant in the PS comment. You have been warned.**

**TheBlazingK: Yes, I am evil. And proud of it, haha. And I don't think Su would appreciate you calling her 'cute'. lol**

**Wolfgangwalker12: I will keep going, of course!**

**I was also thinking of doing another 1 shot for 150th reviewer, but I think I'll wait for 200. Besides, that riddle is still up for grabs. No one has yet answered it, and I don't really think anyone will at this point. Surprise me, maybe? :)**

**Oh, and not to seem ungrateful here, but why do so few of you review? The story has almost 30 followers and favorites, yet it only gets about 6 reviews a chapter. I'm grateful for the 6, and for the 30 followers, but I promise if most of you review, I'll think about adding one of my pre-written scenes to the next chapters. When I say pre-written, it may or may not have to do with PxT. Incentive, yes?**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OCs and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Valley of Peace**

"So, how are we all getting along?" Shifu asked, walking into the training hall.

The occupants all switched their gaze, with Po and the Five, minus Tigress, rushing to their master. The two younger Wu sisters gave each other a look, allowing some small chuckles at their reaction.

"Doing well, Master. We've been training just as hard as ever." Viper piped up, a smile adorning her face.

"That is all well and good, Viper," Shifu replied, "But I meant how are you getting along with our present company?" He gestured towards the two leopards against the far wall, they hadn't yet moved from their position.

"Oh. They haven't really done much, Master." Crane said. "They've just been watching. We asked if they would like to join us in training..." He trailed off, leaving the question unanswered.

"Yes? Clearly they didn't accept."

"You're right, they didn't. They said something about it not being advanced enough to really teach them anything."

"Very well." Shifu looked around for a moment, realizing the empty presence. "Where is Tigress?"

"She left a little while ago, Master. She didn't say why. Just up and left."

"She probably went to go talk with our sister." Wing calmly stated.

"Weren't you just on the other side of the room?" Mantis asked. "How did you get over here without us noticing?"

"What are you talking about, Mantis?" Shifu said, an uncharacteristic grin making itself known. "She just walked over, her sister included."

At this, Mantis jumped, noticing Wan right behind him.

"You're all crazy." Mantis grumbled.

"So Tigress is with Su?" Shifu asked, getting back on topic.

"That would be my best guess," said Wing. "But about what, I can only speculate."

"Then perhaps I should go fin-"

_Bong!_

"Was that the village warning bell?" Monkey exclaimed, all of their attention was now garnered on the sound coming from outside.

_Bong!_

"It most definitely was." Shifu said. "Go and find out what's happening. I'll fetch Tigress."

"We'll accompany you." Wan said, as they all made their way out of the hall.

Shifu quickly located Tigress, she was already on her way down to the village. He saw that Su was with her, they were both responding to the call. He ran beside them, and Tigress asked what was going on.

"I have as much information as you do." He said between bounds. "But the village wouldn't ring the bell unless there was an emergency."

"Look!" Su shouted, gaining both masters' attention. "The village!"

When they stared down, they saw the people in a panic. A few buildings were on fire, and it seemed as though a general chaos had declared itself natural law. The others were already helping some villagers to safety, though none of them could see the cause, that is until Shifu looked beyond the pillars of smoke.

"There." He pointed, and they followed his line of sight, until they too saw.

**The Village**

"They are all in a panic, my lord. Some of the warriors have begun to assist, but their grandmaster has not yet shown himself." The commander informed his master, as they both walked amongst the destruction left in the wake of the commander's soldiers. "I'm sure he'll be arriving soon, though."

"I am sure as well." Amadus replied, staring with glee at the burned homes around him. "Isn't this exciting?"

"Sir?"

"I haven't personally killed anyone in years. I think I'm in withdrawal." He laughed, putting a paw to his sword, and drawing it. "Carry on, commander. I'll be right behind you."

"Of course, sir." He said, also drawing his weapon and joining the soldiers ahead.

All of the masters and the sisters met in the midst of the chaos, and quickly started doing battle against the soldiers. They were doing well, but suddenly without warning the soldiers backed off.

"What's wrong? We too good for you?" Mantis joked.

"Not at all."

A few of the soldiers parted, making way for Amadus and the commander.

"They just know better than to get in the way of my prey."

Shifu took a few steps forward, making eye contact with the snow leopard.

"You are Amadus, I presume?"

"You would assume correctly."

Tigress subconsciously hissed, recognizing the name from Jin's story.

"You will pay for your crimes." She practically shouted, trying to keep herself under control.

"Let's see some of that anger in a battle, yes? I look forward to this." Amadus smirked, his grip tightened on his blade.

They all prepared themselves, and Shifu dashed forward first. His students were not worried, Shifu's speed and agility were unmatched in China. But Amadus was not from China. He caught Shifu's fist, and held his blade to his exposed throat.

"I was expecting so much more."

Everyone cringed, Amadus excluded.

The sound of steel ripping flesh was not pleasant.

* * *

**Here comes the gasp... There it is. Apparently I enjoy torturing you all, I didn't know I was a sadist until I started writing, lol. As always, reviews and constructive criticism are appreciated.**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	29. By Way Of Blade

**And here we are again, and much quicker this time than the last. I made sure to do that, as I'm sure you'd all be a bit upset with me if I did it again. Myself included. Oh, and all of you PxT fans out there may like this chapter, though it's a bit of a tease. I'm actually posting this in the middle of school. Don't tell my teachers. :) Anyway, not much else to say this time, so a few replies, and then the story.**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: Sorry about that, lol.**

**The Pizza Man: I did try adding you, but it said your GT didn't exist. Maybe you spelled it wrong in the review. Glad you liked the chapter though.**

**Smiles1998: Suspense is ALL THE THINGS!**

**Christ's Disciple: Good to know I'm literally writing this, so that you can metaphorically sit on the edge of your seat. That sounded sarcastic... It wasn't, though. Promise.**

**Guest: Thank you!**

**Puckabrinaluver: Would I now? Possibly...**

**Wolfgangwalker12: You begged for it, and here it is!**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OCs and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Valley Of Peace**

Amadus towered over Shifu's small frame, and slowly let go of his fist, letting him fall to the ground at his feet. A pool of blood began to form, much to the horror of those unfortunate enough to be watching.

"No!" Tigress roared, charging towards Amadus.

He sheathed his sword, and began parrying all of her attacks. Anyone could tell he was simply humoring her, an evil smile was plastered on his face. As he was keeping her at bay, he began to speak.

"Have I done something wrong?" He began to laugh. It sent a chill down all of their spines, it was not something one hears in a natural world.

"I'll kill you!" Tigress roared again, quickening her pace and throwing as many punches and kicks as she could towards the maniac.

"Somehow I doubt that. I'm not even trying!" To prove his point, he placed an arm behind his back, much to the infuriation of Tigress. Still he blocked anything she had, and had yet actually thrown any punches.

The rest of the warriors looked on, unsure of what to do. Viper had rushed to Shifu's side, trying to quell the bleeding. Po seemed in a trance, standing still, eyes closed as if in deep thought.

"Fight me, you coward!" Tigress was beginning to tire, she was throwing everything she had at him.

"I think not. I may kill you if I did, and I'll need some entertainment after this war is over." Amadus explained. "You and your merry band of imbeciles here will do nicely."

Tigress stayed silent this time, focusing on ending this monstrosity, and dismembering him as violently and as painfully as possible.

"I tire of this." Amadus said, feigning a yawn. He struck out, knocking Tigress back several feet into the ground. "Let's end it."

Po finally opened his eyes, taking in the scene around him. He saw Viper huddled over Shifu, the rest of his comrades frozen where they stood, Amadus poised tall and unafraid, and then he saw her.

Tigress lay several feet away from him, and she was not getting up. He knew she wasn't dead, simply knocked out, but that did nothing to stop the growing anger. He slowly made his way over to her, checking for a moment to see how hurt she was, and then locked eyes with Amadus. They stood facing each other now, and the look on Po's face was discomforting, even to Amadus. There was a calm, focused rage in his eyes.

_I may not be able to defeat him, but I'll give it my all._

Po readied himself, this was not going to be easy.

Over with the others, the Wu sisters had begun to sneak around the outskirts of the makeshift arena. They were trying to get a jump on some of the troops, without alerting Amadus. Su was watching Po, a bit impressed by his confidence.

_I have my doubts that he can win, though. Especially unarmed._ Su sat pondering this, as she and her sisters had found a good ambush position. She watched as Po and Amadus began exchanging blows, and surprisingly, neither seemed to have the upper hand.

_But he's not using his weapon yet. _She reminded herself. She knew that the second Amadus became serious, he wouldn't hesitate to cut the panda in half. _Where are you Jin?_

"Is that all you got?" Po teased, they had both backed off for a moment. Amadus simply smirked, and drew his sword, instantly making the panda regret his choice of words.

"I invite you to find out exactly 'what I've got'." Amadus countered, and began to circle Po. Po stayed facing him, turning and making sure Amadus couldn't get a surprise strike in, but for now Amadus was completely distracted.

Su decided to take this opportunity to get the jump on the soldiers.

"Now!" The sisters attacked, and on cue the rest of the masters joined in. Viper was still taking care of Shifu however, and Tigress had not woken up yet.

The fighting continued, but it had formed a sort of circle around Amadus and Po, as no one wanted to interfere. Or get killed. Amadus seemed to just ignore the fighting, but Po looked away for a second, and was consequently struck on the arm.

"Argh!" Po yelled in agony, holding a paw over the gash, and Amadus kept the attack up. Slashing every which way, Po needed to forget the injury for a moment to avoid getting more. He dodged to the best of his ability, but that couldn't last forever.

After knocking Po off balance with a swipe across the chest, Amadus kicked him onto his back, and held the point of the sword perilously close to his neck.

At this point, the soldiers had been defeated, though the Commander had disappeared, and as the last soldier fell, all of the masters noticed Po's predicament. No one was willing to make a move though, anything might cause Amadus to end it, and none of them were fast enough.

"So this was all the mighty Dragon Warrior had to offer? Pathetic." He kicked Po in his side, making him wince and clutch his abdomen. He cried out in pain, and finally Tigress awoke. Her eyes fluttered open as she laid there, only to find Po held at sword point. Po was on his side as well, and their eyes met for what they truly believed to be the last time.

"Well, isn't this just precious." Amadus was switching his gaze between the two. "I'll take even greater pleasure in this, now." He laughed heartily, and prepared to open Po's neck.

"Po..." Tigress could barely speak, the wind was still knocked out of her. "I-"

There was a flash, one that all except Amadus could see, and within an instant, with a gust of wind, they saw a silhouette appear behind him.

"Agh!" Amadus yelled in agony, and looking down, he found a blade sticking through his shoulder, the blood trickling down his body. He looked at it for a moment, and immediately recognized it. "Ah, Darkbringer. I was wondering when you'd get here, Jin."

He turned his head, and found Jin, cloak and all, glaring at him from under his hood. Jin's eyes seemed to glow red for a moment in the dark of the hood, before he twisted the black blade, getting another small yell in response from Amadus.

"Hello, _master_."

* * *

**Jin to the rescue! Time for kicking ass and taking names, right? But's what's with Jin? And remember, the story doesn't end with this fight. It only grows more complicated...**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	30. Peace, At Long Last

**And once again I find myself updating late. I suck at this, huh? But this time, I have a valid excuse! I started beta reading for someone, and that took up a little more time than expected. But I'm back, and as strong as ever. I also noticed, that somehow, the views for this story has stayed stable at about 70 views a day since my last update. I don't know how that happened, but it did, and I thank you all for your patience. Also, on another note, I officially rock at paintball. Just saying. **

**And another race to the review! Reviewer 200 gets a one-shot. Of course, that riddle still hasn't been solved, either.**

**Also, has anyone else noticed that uploads to this category of FanFiction seems to have slowed down? I feel like updates are farther and fewer between, mine included unfortunately.**

**A few replies, and we're off!**

**Simba593: Jin always kicks ass. And be ready for a bit more teasing.**

**Smiles1998: Yes, yes it will. :)**

**Pandamaster97720: You're all totally awesome and I love you all!**

**Sicarius19: Pat on the back received.**

**Puckabrinaluver: I thought I've mentioned this before. Drama is ALL THE THINGS! That's a quote, by the way. Not just me being weird. Well, it is, but... Nevermind. Enjoy the story!**

**Christ's Disciple: I love making things exciting. Otherwise, it's just... not... exciting. Yeah.**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: Never gone, only temporarily away. :D**

**The Pizza Man: Amadus' arm will stay right where it is. For now, anyway. Oh, and you need to practice at Black Ops 2. lol**

**Oh, and this chapter gets a little more bloody. Just warning you.**

**Disclaimer: I own only the plot and my OCs. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Valley of Peace**

"Hello, _master_." Jin spat at the figure in front of him, reveling in the pain he was causing. He was trying as hard as he could not to smile beside himself. He wasn't succeeding.

"I see your thirst for blood hasn't faded with your allegiances." Amadus replied coldly. He straightened himself, ignoring the pain.

"I have no need to spill blood, master. You tried to create that very thirst, but you failed."

Amadus laughed, instilling only more hatred in Jin's heart.

"And yet here we are, a sword in my back. I think I succeeded."

"You confuse a need for blood, with the need to see you die." Jin countered, his grip on the sword handle was growing painful.

"I'm not sure if they agree."

Jin broke his gaze from Amadus, to his comrades surrounding him. Most had horrified looks adorning their faces, save only three.

Po had made it to Tigress, and was holding her up. He was concentrating on the scene Jin was making, however, blood still seeping from Amadus' shoulder onto the ground, where a small pool had formed. His face... not quite scared, but almost disapproving. Jin could take that, having already resolved to simply ignore or take pride in receiving such looks. But...

Tigress and Su. Theirs were more complicated, not simply negative, but on another level. Tigress seemed... disappointed. As if in pity. An understanding sympathy, that drove right to his core. Su seemed a mixture of confusion and fright.

_Right._ Jin thought. _She's never seen me like this. I'd be lying if I said I didn't want it to stay that way._

In that moment, realization dawned on him. Whether he had wanted it or not, he was becoming exactly what Amadus had set out to create. A killer, an unfeeling mercenary that only followed orders. Without a heart.

"No."

"Excuse me?" Amadus asked, bewildered at the answer. "What do you mean, no?"

"I will not be... this. I know who I am."

He pulled backwards, sliding the blade out of Amadus' shoulder. He disarmed his former master in one swift motion, kicking the blade far from reach. He held his sword back to Amadus' throat, keeping him in line.

"You know who you are?" Amadus scoffed. "Please. I stripped all of what you were away years ago. You are nothing now, nothing but a tool. The only thing that's changed is the paw that holds you."

"I know who I am." He repeated, more to himself than anyone else.

"I am Jin."

He threw his own sword to the side, sticking it in the ground. He wound back, and punched Amadus with all the strength he could muster.

He was thrown back several yards, slamming into a nearby wall and toppling it. He began to get up from the rubble, but Jin sped forwards in an upper cut that sent Amadus flying back in the other direction.

Jin wasn't letting up, now. Every time Amadus gained his footing, he was consequently punched, kicked or once even headbutted back down. In between strikes, Jin began speaking.

"I will not let you harm my friends."

Another punch.

"I will not let you harm China."

A crippling kick to the abdomen.

"I know who I am, because you failed."

Amadus was limping now, fatigue had set in, and the wound in his shoulder didn't help. He was struggling to keep upright, bruises were scattered on his body. Defending himself had become an impossibility.

"I am not YOU!"

With one last spinning kick to the head, it was over, and Amadus stayed down. He was coughing up blood on the ground, still conscious, but barely.

Jin took a moment of silent victory, a wave of calm washing over him. The others rushed over, congratulating him. Tigress was still holding on to Po, though for some reason Jin figured it wasn't for lack of ability to walk anymore.

"I told you so." Tigress said with a smirk.

"Viper? How is Shifu doing?"

"He's lost a lot of blood, but he'll be okay." Viper replied, still hunched over his body. "But we need to get him to a healer."

"I hate to break up this little party you're all having, but I really must get on with things."

They all turned, finding the Commander behind Su, who hadn't moved.

"Sister!" The younger Wu sisters' eyes widened.

"Su! Behind you!" Jin shouted.

"A little late for that." He gestured with his hand, revealing a knife at Su's throat. "Now, if you'll be so kind as to release my Lord back to my custody, we can all be on our way."

"Don't-"

"Quiet! Let the poor sap decide for himself." The Commander interrupted Su, pressing the knife closer. A cruel grin was dominating his features. Jin knew he wasn't bluffing.

"Alright. Just let her go." Jin dragged Amadus for a moment, then threw him over behind the Commander. A few of the soldiers had reawakened, and began hauling him off back out of the village.

"Smart boy." The Commander smirked, then pushed Su forward onto the ground, and quickly dashed after his men.

"I'm sorry." Su said quietly, as Jin helped her up.

"Don't be silly., there was nothing you could have done." Jin replied. "Besides, I beat him once, now. I can do it again."

"He's right." Po said, that signature smile lighting up his face. "Now we know we can win."

"And we will." Jin said, glaring off into the woods at the retreating forms.

"Now we need only to prove it to them."

**Outside Gongmen City**

The two sisters had finally reached their destination. Normally, it would have taken only half a day, but considering their wounds, they were content with the progress. Finding the hidden camp in the woods turned out not to be too difficult, as well disguised as it was. There were camps like these outside every major city in China, none had the strength to take the fortified settlements, but they were enough for what was intended of them.

They walked into the heart of the camp, finding the acting captain of the regiment.

"Miladies?" He inquired, as he stood to attention, along with the rest of the soldiers gathered around. "Is it time?"

"Almost, captain. Our father has sent us here in lieu of the encroaching date." The older sibling responded. "The second that the main force is in position,"

"We strike." Her sister concluded with a forced smile.

"China won't know what hit it."

* * *

**Cue ominous music? Me thinks so. Tell me what you thought, and reviews and constructive criticism are appreciated as always.**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	31. Contingency

**Another update, another few days later. Though, this time, I have a little something to discuss with all of you before we begin. I'd appreciate it if you took the time to make a reply in all of your respective reviews.**

**So, a few people have been asking me what I thought of the KFP tv show. I'll be honest. I hate it.**

**It seems to have taken all the things the movie did, and ignored it all. Po was becoming a more responsible, and mature adult, (While maintaining his giddy personality), but the show just makes him the biggest moronic klutz this side of the universe.**

_**However.**_

**I just so happened to be bored this afternoon, and saw the latest episode had been recorded. My younger brother still watches it, and I decided to give it another shot. I'd heard it had been getting better, so why not?**

**Imagine my surprise when I found myself slightly enjoying the episode. Sure, it had those stupid little moments where I completely disagreed with what it was doing, but overall, it wasn't bad.**

**Then imagine my surprise when it started hinting a PoxTigress relationship.**

**...**

**What?**

**Yep. I won't spoil anything, but there was no way the episode's creators weren't thinking it, believe me. I still don't really like the show, but at least now I know it has some redeeming qualities.**

**A few replies, and we're off.**

**Guest: No, they didn't take over. They were just following orders. And the Wu sisters are good guys, remember? There to stay.**

**Smiles1998: This is what's next.**

**Puckabrinaluver: Sunday boredom sucks, huh?**

**TheBlazingK: I might have cried too if Shifu died. Well, maybe not but I'd be sad!**

**Simba593: Teasing, away! (Not stopping in this chapter, either)**

**Sweetluckygirl: I like to think that 'epic' defines this story.**

**M4dG4rl: You... Had a lot to say, so thanks for all the reviews!**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: I do really like how that fight scene turned out. My blood was pumping while writing it! Got to get in the mood.**

**The Pizza Man: Paintball rocks, huh?**

**Christ's Disciple: Then I have to give you an EPIC thank you.**

**Wolfgangwalker12: Butt kicking is high on Jin's resume.**

**Guest #2: That's pretty awesome!**

**Joe5: There's that word again, epic. If so many people use it to describe my story, I guess it must be true!**

**That... Was a lot of reviews. Whew.**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OCs and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Valley Of Peace**

"Guys, can I get some help here?" Viper asked, gesturing towards Shifu's body. The bleeding had stopped, they all saw, but it was clear that the wound may open at any time.

"Crane, Monkey. Help Viper get Shifu to a healer." Jin barked, watching as the two said masters quickly hurried.

"Jin? Exactly what are we supposed to do now?" Tigress inquired. "We can't just wait for them to ready themselves again."

"And we won't. We can't give them even the slightest break."

"What do you propose?"

"Su, your army is prepared, correct?" Seeing her nod, he continued. "Then send word for them to get into position. Amadus won't expect such an attack so soon."

"And what are we to do?"

Jin turned to Tigress, and then to the others.

"It will take a day, maybe two for Su's army to reach the ambush point. Another day for us to reach it as well. That's when we'll take out those guard towers we spoke about earlier, you know the plan."

"Should we set out as soon as possible, then?"

"No, I can tell you're all a bit tired from today. We need to be in peak condition. And besides, Shifu's out of commission, and we're expecting company, if I remember correctly."

"Right, the Master's Council. Or what's left of it." Po mumbled the last part, not wanting to be a downer.

"There actually isn't much left, Po. You're right."

Po's head shot up in surprise, a sheepish grin spreading, but it slowly turned a bit crestfallen.

"Don't worry, Po." Tigress said, still clinging to his arm, Jin noticed. "We'll be okay. Besides, someone needs to avenge all those awesome warriors." Seeing that her words had the desired effect, she gave him a small smile.

"Did you hear anything while you were, umm, away, Jin? About the rest of the council?" Po asked.

"As far as I can tell, only masters Croc and Ox are left. I'm sorry, I wasn't able to make it in time for the rest."

" Did you find those responsible?" Su spoke up.

"...Yes. They won't be a problem anymore."

A few eyes widened, and a short silence fell upon the group.

"I was able to save more than a few noble families. They were clearly trying to make sure China had no leaders to turn to when the war broke out." Jin needed to break that silence before it grew deafening. "If my math is correct, there aren't any more assassins left in the area. Well, except for the twins."

"The twins?"

"They don't matter. I made sure they wouldn't be interfering already."

"Well then, let's get some rest. It's a bit early, so maybe Po could whip up some of his famous cooking?" Su said, hinting towards Po.

"All right! I'm starving." Po began to walk off to the palace, before he paused a moment. He turned to Tigress, who had stayed behind. "Tigress? I could use some help. A lot of food to be made, and all."

"Of course Po." She made her way to his side again, and the two began their ascent up the stairs.

"Tigress, you can walk again!" Jin called after them. "It's a miracle!"

A few chuckles emerged from the group, causing the two bright red masters to quicken their pace up the steps.

**With The Twins**

"Word from the commander, miladies."

The two sisters turned from their desk, and took the parchment from the messenger. Upon reading it, their eyes widened, and they stole a glance at each other.

"Apparently father took one too many risks."

"Agreed. But the plan remains unchanged. Once the army is here, we infiltrate the city and make sure it won't be a problem."

"Those cannons worry me. They're well defended."

"But we must take them out if the army is to have a chance. Do not be anxious, sister. Victory is within our reach."

She quickly jotted down a reply, and acknowledgment of the situation on another parchment. Wrapping it up, she passed it back to the messenger, and sent him on his way.

"You did see what else the message said, did you not?"

She sighed, closing her eyes for a moment.

"Yes, dear sister. Jin will pay for what he's done to our family. All of it."

"But how? He killed them all! What's to stop him from doing the same to us?" Her voice was raising, attracting some attention from outside.

"We'll stop him. We can, I know it."

Her sister still looked doubtful, so she embraced her to try and give some small comfort.

"I know we have it in us, sister. We were the best, next to Jin. And besides, I have a small contingency plan."

"What is that?"

She smirked, and her eyes grew dark for a moment.

"Without his spirit, Jin will be nothing. So we crush it."

"How exactly do we do that?"

Her smirk became a full fledged grin.

* * *

**So what did you think? No exciting fight scenes here. And what are those two twins planning?**

**Remember to leave your thoughts on what I said earlier, and reviews and constructive criticism are appreciated.**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	32. Insanity, and It's Benefits

**Sorry.**

**That's really all I've got.**

**I know I've been horrible, but I want you all to know that I'm nowhere near abandoning this story. It WILL be finished.**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: Really sorry about all this. I'm fine now.**

**Christ's Disciple: You must be exhausted by this point.**

**Puckabrinaluver: Here it is, in all it's glory.**

**Smiles1998: Constant with updates, huh? Oops.**

**Sicarius19: Vacation starts now for me, actually. I'm going to Ireland soon, too! Drunk times and fun times.**

**The Pizza Man: Ha _Ha_. Right back at you.**

**ScaledWolf: I apologize to you, new reader. You didn't come at an opportune time, seeing as how I've been a bit spare with updates. But I'm back on track now.**

**Oh, I almost forgot about something.**

**/watch?v=exDlYKhYbqA&list=FLkV2wF4SjGBc8GtWib_fRzA&index=1**

**Just put the you tube address in front of it.**

**With that said, here's the next chapter.**

* * *

**Valley of Peace**

The light in the valley had begun to grow dim, soft hues of yellow and orange washing over what was left of the town's center. The buildings' fires had all been put out, after the confusion had died down. Blackened, charred debris was all that remained of several homes. Thankfully, there hadn't been too many casualties. But the fact that there were any, was bothersome. Jin sat crouched near the stairs to the palace, silently keeping watch, in case any stragglers from the fight decided to become a problem.

"Something I've seen much too often." He half-whispered to himself.

"What, broken bits of building? I can recommend a contractor."

Jin turned slightly, barely registering Tigress next to him.

"No, actually. I was referring to the broken bits of the people that were in them." He said darkly, instantly regretting what he had accidentaly let slip.

Tigress' eyes widened, but she sighed, almost in pity, if Jin read it correctly.

"Maybe my jokes aren't as good as I thought." Tigress responded. "I figured I'd need to learn a sense of humor lately, what with Po, and now you around. But if they get a response like that..."

"No, no." Jin countered. "It's not your fault. I'm just tired, is all. Tired of it always coming to this. Death may have been considered part of my 'art', as it were, but that never made it any less ugly to me."

"I understand." Tigress said, nodding. "Besides, I'm sure you had enough ugly to go around, anyway." She finished with a smirk.

"Oh! Tigress, you wound me." Jin feigned being hurt, a paw over his chest. "Not bad, by the way. I think you've been around Mantis a bit too much lately." They both shared a small chuckle, before Jin realized something. "Aren't you supposed to be helping Po with the food? Or maybe just helping in general?" He raised a brow at the last bit, another chuckle escaping his muzzle as he watched Tigress flush.

"We had just finished, I came down to get you so we could all eat. Shifu's doing well, by the way. Thankfully the blade didn't hit anything maj-" She stopped, realizing Jin wasn't next to her anymore. She turned around, seeing Jin making his way up the steps.

"What? You said food."

She shook her head, and followed him up the steps as the last remnants of light disappeared from the steps, only to be relit by the lanterns in the area.

"You're just as bad as Po, I swear."

"Ah, so that's why you like me so much. Here I thought I was being original." Jin shot back, that smirk dominating his features.

"I-you-..." She stopped, realizing the futility of the situation. "You're impossible."

"That's what you get for trying to throw some attacks my way." Jin happily said, continuing his way up the stairs, not missing a beat. "I'm the recognized king of insult wars in several countries."

"That's not a thing." Tigress deadpanned, only to lose her focus a moment later. "That's not a thing, right?" She looked curiously over to Jin, who simply shrugged, and looked back up the mountain.

"I don't rightly know. But if it was, I'm totally it."

"I am not entirely sure how, but I think speaking to you has lowered my overall intelligence."

"I didn't know a person's intelligence _could_ go lower than that."

"..."

"Well?"

"Fine. You are the insult king. Satisfied?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact."

Tigress bit back a groan, silently cheering to herself when they reached the top of the stairs. Before they headed off to the kitchen, though, Jin put a paw on her shoulder.

"Thanks, by the way. I needed a little pick me up." Jin had lost the smirk, his face only showing true gratitude now. A bit surprised by the sudden mood change, Tigress just nodded back.

"Any time."

They started walking again, but this time their travel to the kitchen went unhindered by meaningless arguments.

So, naturally, something else had to ruin it.

Simultaneously, both Jin's and Tigress' ears perked up, Jin barely dodging a well thrown knife.

"Every damn time!" Jin shouted, crouching into a defensive position. "Why can't I get any peace and quiet in the damned Valley of Peace, for crying out loud!"

"Maybe you should leave then, you murderous scum!" A voice rang out around them, until it was given a face, as Master Croc walked out of the shadows. "Master Tigress! Distance yourself from him!"

"What? Master Croc!" Tigress exclaimed, shaking off the confusion of the moment. "Stand down! He's a friend."

"Nonsense!" Another figure walked into the clearing, shown to be Ox. "I know what he's told you, from that letter Shifu sent us. But he's clearly been lying through his teeth. Him and a bunch of his buddies have been killing all over China!"

"We only just escaped such a death ourselves!" Croc added, circling around to corner Jin.

"I'm sorry you had the misfortune of meeting my... acquaintances. Trust me when I say you'll not be dealing with any more, any time soon." Jin gravely spoke, a chill showing itself in the air where there was not one before, making the masters shiver slightly.

"You'd even kill your own allies?" Croc spat at the ground. "Despicable."

"Please!" All eyes went to Tigress, as she attempted to remedy the situation. "Masters Croc and Ox, Jin is on our side. He came to us long before we even knew there was a threat such as this, and he went out to stop those assassins, not assist them. He's already helped us more than you are currently aware. There have been... a few events since your involvement, which you will be informed of in due time."

This seemed to have the desired effect, calming them for but a moment.

"Fine then, but we've got our eyes on you. Spies are not unheard of here."

"Maybe not..." Jin responded, a smirk reappearing. "But certainly showers are, if you two are any hint." He muttered this last bit, knowing only Tigress would hear it.

Tigress rolled her eyes. She might be used to this behavior, but that didn't mean she had to like it. Plus, the two masters in front of her didn't seem to be in a joking mood.

"Jin, behave."

He scowled, if only for a moment.

"At any rate, I am glad you two finally decided to show up. We have been waiting for ages now." Jin said, an impatient tone very obviously making its way into his voice.

"Hey!" Croc said. "Walking across China with a band of assassins following us doesn't make for a quick trip."

"Didn't bother me any. I've been across China a few times these past couple of days. _And_ I dealt with the assassins." His smug face was back, prompting Tigress to interrupt again.

"Boys! You're both pretty. Now, can we please get inside and meet with the others? I'm sure you're both very hungry from your travels, so maybe we should get to that?" Her tone had grown a bit frustrated, though her face didn't reveal much aside from poorly concealed anger.

"She's right. Let's get inside. I'm sure Po would love to see you anyway." Jin replied, gesturing for them all to follow as he began the trek to the kitchen again. "He's been a bit worried, seeing as how you two seem to be the only ones left."

"What do you mean by that? I thought the others were on their way?" Ox asked, though it was more of a statement than a question.

"They were, until they all fell silent. As far as I can tell, you're all that's left of the Masters' Council, aside from Shifu."

This news brought about another silence, deafening in it's simplicity. Even the lantern light seemed subdued at the fact's reveal.

"I... I assume you've all made a plan in our absence?" Croc shakily inquired.

"We have, but for now, I suggest we eat, and relax." Jin said, as they arrived in front of the building which housed the kitchen. "We can worry tomorrow morning about the details. I can even fill you in on a bit over dinner."

"That sounds perfect. The Dragon Warrior's cooking is almost as legendary as he is." Ox said, already forgetting about what had ocurred only moments before.

They all marched in, coming up to the kitchen door. Jin motioned for them to wait a moment, not wanting to ruin the surprise just yet for Po. Upon it's opening, everyone in the room glanced over, seeing Jin and Tigress first.

"Tigress! Jin!" Po almost yelled. "We've been waiting for you this whole time!" He was practically whining now, and Tigress chuckled a bit, which didn't go missed by anyone.

"Wow, I'm not sure I've ever heard Tigress laugh before." Mantis pointed out. "I thought her laugh box was permanently out of commission from all the years of misuse."

"Strange, I thought the same of your brain, Mantis." Tigress said with a wide grin.

The noise in the room was hushed over, before the smiles and laughter broke out, leaving Mantis in the dust..

"Not bad, Tigress." Jin said off-hand. "I may need to watch out for my title."

"Oh yes, that reminds me. Don't we have some guests to introduce, Jin?"

"Right." Noticing the confused looks, Jin gestured to the door. "Ladies and gents, Croc and Ox have arrived."

The two aforementioned masters walked through the door, only to stop moments in. They stared across the table, and three pairs of eyes stared back.

"Oh, yes. Hello, Croc, hello Ox." Su said, one of the biggest shit-eating grins she could muster on her face.

**Elsewhere**

Meanwhile, Amadus had just woken up in his tent, only to be mildly restrained by some medics, not wanting to end up dead. Even in his weak state, they knew better than to instigate anything.

"What is happening? Where am I?" Amadus tried to shout, though his injured throat made it very hoarse and weak.

The commander rushed in, having heard the commotion. He calmly kept Amadus down on the bed.

"Please, sir. You might injure yourself further. You're in the medical tent, back in the camp."

Only now did Amadus notice the many bandages adorning his body, most were soaked through with blood, long dried since their preparation. He laid back down, groaning a bit.

"What happened, exactly?" He managed to get out, his memory just as hazy as his sight.

"We were... defeated, sir." The commander gulped, flinching back a bit, as to avoid any tirade the information may instill.

"Oh, is that all? You made it seem much more serious." Amadus lazily responded, now almost looking serene, if it weren't so disturbing to the commander.

"It's... not serious, sir?"

"Of course not. Remember, we still have an army, and China has almost nothing left to turn to. Most of my pupils were successful, before Jin stopped them. He did very well, as it happens." A glint showed in his eyes. "Just like I taught him."

"You're not upset sir? By their deaths, I mean."

"Why should I be? Their usefulness expired along with their targets." A wicked grin played on his features now. Almost playful in nature. "Now the real games begin. And with Jin as he is, they're likely to end up being at least twenty percent cooler than they would have been before."

Now the commander backed off a few feet, as Amadus started cackling happily, the medics following in kind. He brought them out of the tent, and to the side.

"Is it possible he may have suffered any... mental unrest from the injuries?"

"I... I don't believe so, sir. It's possible, but my guess is that he's finally snapped. If you'll excuse my bluntness, of course."

"Well, that's..." He thought for a moment. "That's very likely. Keep him under for now, yes? I'm afraid I'll need to handle things for now." The two medics nodded quickly. "Keep me informed on his condition, both physical, and mental."

He walked away, leaving the doctors to their work.

"And now I've got an insane, dangerous leader to worry about."

He looked up at the rising moon, momentarily wishing it would just fall to the planet and crush him, ending his problems once and for all.

"This day keeps getting better."

* * *

**This is not the commander's day.**

**Also, on another note, a very unexpected reference in this chapter. I didn't even realize what I'd written until I went back and looked at it. If you spot the very uncanny reference, you get a cookie.**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	33. Addendum

**Due to the inability of readers to review to the last chapter, I decided to create this chapter.**

**Please feel free to comment on the last chapter, on this one.**

**I don't really like doing this, as it isn't a new chapter, but I feel that it's necessary for you all to share your feelings, even if it's just one chapter.**

**Following chapters will not have any problems, and will continue as normal.**


	34. Awkward Situations

**Hey. What's up.**

**Before you decide this story isn't worth the trouble, and attempt to throw something through your screen at me, please hear me out. My life has taken an interesting turn lately, and I find myself with very little free time. Last month, I put out an update, and for a few days, I had convinced myself that my troubles were over, and I could begin throwing out chapters again. Clearly I was fooling myself, as I say this a month later.**

**But now, as I write this forward note, I can tell you that won't happen again. I've spent the last few nights zooming through work, to make sure I've got enough time to do this. And I WILL. Do. This.**

**Writer Beastmode, activate.**

**Smiles1999: Yes, I have telepathic powers. Yes, I know what you're thinking right now. Cue Twilight Zone theme music.**

**The Pizza Man: The luck has been wished upon you. Do with it what you will.**

**Sweetluckygirl: I'm sorry that the moment you became not silent, I did the opposite. I promise it won't happen again.**

**Fanfictionlover2013: As I'm sure I've said before, ahem, Suspense is ALL THE THINGS!**

**Christ's Disciple: Judging by your spotting of the reference, I assume you are a brony. /) *brohoof* (\**

**Sicarius19: Hangovers... Yes. I had one of those not too long ago. The problem is, with me it takes literally 20 shots of 80 proof whiskey to get me hammered. And by that time, the hangover isn't a question, it's a promise.**

**Lazy Puckabrina: I didn't know caves had internet connections. You must live in the upper district. :)**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: I fail to impress all the time, you guys just don't have to be subjected to all of it. But here I am, ready and eager to write once again!**

**Without further ado, I bring you the latest installment.**

**Enjoy.**

* * *

**Jade Palace Kitchen**

"You!" Croc hissed, his face immediately turning hostile. Ox was likewise infuriated, though he stayed silent, save for a low growl.

"You know each other?" Jin inquired, eyeing both Su and the masters. He took note of the grin Su was wearing, it was a bit uncharacteristic of her. That is, if he could claim to know much about her anyway.

"Know each other?!" Croc half yelled. "We put them in jail! Do _you_ know who they are?"

"Su, Wan, and Wing Wu. Also known as the Wu sisters, nationally acclaimed thieves, and leaders of the largest coalition of criminals in China." Jin calmly stated, momentarily reveling in the chaos of the moment.

"I-" Croc paused in his response, his mind registering all of Jin's words. "What was that last part?"

"Croc, Ox, please, they're on our side!" Po interrupted, hoping to salvage what was quickly becoming a bad situation.

"On our..." Croc stopped, and just collapsed in the chair in front of him, pulling a bowl of soup closer to him, and started muttering. "I give up. Too many enemies today." He brought a spoonful to his mouth, and his face quickly brightened.

Ox soon followed, still watching the sisters across the table.

"I must admit, I was expecting a more... violent reaction to our presence." Su said, her grin turning more playful.

"I may have enjoyed watching that." Jin replied, him and Tigress taking their respective seats. "These two have already annoyed me tonight, and I haven't really gotten to see you fight yet."

"Please." Mantis spoke. "You just want an excuse to watch her twist that body."

Silence. Su's two sisters were busy staring daggers into Mantis, while he unknowingly continued eating.

Jin was otherwise unaccounted for, mentally, that is. Physically, he was banging his muzzle into the table, attempting to rid himself of several... rather unsavory images.

"Mantis... You may yet succeed in making me an enemy tonight." Jin finally shot out, his face resting on the table. The rest of the table's occupants, however, were lost in chuckles, and downright laughter from a few.

"That's quite alright, Jin. Let me." Viper smacked Mantis over the head, sending his face into his bowl. The laughter grew louder, and even Croc and Ox joined this time.

"Sister, may we kill him now?"

Su turned her head, and shook it with a grin.

"No, that will not be necessary. I find him amusing." Some growling could be heard from where Jin laid his head. "Besides, coming from you, he'd probably enjoy it anyway."

"Damned right." Mantis proudly replied.

"That wasn't supposed to be a compliment, Mantis." Jin had lifted his head, and had narrowed his eyes at said bug.

"Well, I'm going to take it as one."

"If I could interrupt your little hate fest?" Eyes went to Ox, who had remained silent until now. "I believe we were promised an update on the goings on here at the palace."

"Of course. What would you like to know?"

"First off, what happened down in the village? I assume the destroyed buildings weren't designed like that."

"Ah yes. There was an attack on the village. Amadus and a few of his trained goons."

"Amadus?" Croc raised a brow.

"The lord of the incoming army."

"The leader of an army came personally? That doesn't seem too bright."

"It wasn't." Jin paused and looked down for a moment. "That's what bothers me."

"Jin?" Tigress looked at him.

"He would have know this wasn't a smart tactical move. Whether or not he thought he could beat you all, such a risk simply isn't like him."

"What are you suggesting?"

"Something's wrong with him. I couldn't see anything specific during the fight, but something was off about him."

"You mean he's lost his mind?" Crane asked.

"Not quite that far, I think. I mean, he's never been a very stable person." Jin chuckled. "I remember, back in the program, he used to-" He stopped, noticing the wide eyes surrounding him.

He sighed, and finished off his soup with a couple of quick spoonfuls, knowing he likely wouldn't have much time to eat any more soon enough.

The silence broke, and he was bombarded with questions. He could barely make out any specific one, the garble was too complete.

"Stop!" Tigress shouted, putting an end to Jin's torture. "Perhaps one at a time, if Jin even _wants _to answer any of your questions?"

"Okay, first off, you know Amadus?" Monkey asked, ignoring Tigress for the most part. Satisfied with his question, the rest stayed silent, waiting for Jin's response.

"Yes." After waiting for a few moments, they realized he had stopped, and wasn't planning on explaining further.

"Care to elaborate on that?"

"He was the one who trained me."

A few shocked gasps echoed through the room, making Jin flinch.

"He's the master you told us about? The one who started training you so young?"

"You mean to tell me," Croc began, "That you were personally trained by our current enemy?"

Jin flinched again, and anyone could see he was uncomfortable with bringing up this topic. He was quiet for a few moments, and kept staring at his empty bowl. Anything to avoid those disappointed eyes he was sure were bearing down on him. He found the courage to look up, and was surprised by what he saw. Not looks of disgust, but ones of worry for his well-being. They seemed to actually care for him.

"Yes, I was trained by Amadus. I'm surprised this didn't come up earlier, with what I said down in the village." A few confused looks made him raise a brow. "You didn't hear what I said while I had him... incapacitated? Or while I was fighting him?"

"We couldn't hear you saying much of anything during the fight, dude." Mantis spoke up. "And I did see you whispering while you had your blade... Umm, while you were behind Amadus. But I don't think any of us could hear any specific words." Some murmurs of agreement settled it.

"I see."

"So, what's this program you mentioned?" Jin flinched violently this time. "Was it some kind of training seminar? Or maybe-"

Mantis was cut off as Jin rose from the table and promptly left the room, without a word.

Tigress sighed, giving Jin's back a knowing glance before he had completely left. Now though, the eyes were on her.

"You knew?" Po asked.

"I know a few details. None that I'd be willing to share with any of you." Noticing the looks of hurt flash over her comrade's faces, she continued. "I'm not at liberty to disclose such personal things about Jin's prior life. He will reveal them to you when he so chooses. In the meantime, I'm sure he'd appreciate some privacy. So try not to delve too deep where you shouldn't go." She stood up, and made for the door.

"Where are you going?" Su asked.

"To find Jin."

"I'll come with you."

Tigress responded with a quick glare, but upon thinking for a moment, decided it might help. She nodded curtly, and the two left for the evening.

"So..." Po said, after a long awkward silence. "Would anyone like some more soup?"

**Jade Palace Courtyard**

"Any idea where he might have gone?" Su asked, walking beside Tigress.

"My first thought was the roof, but he's clearly not there." The two continued forward, eyes peeled for a flash of black and white.

"Can... Can you maybe tell me a few things?" Su hesitantly asked.

"As I told the others, Jin must tell you himself."

"I understand, but I'd like to know why he became so... upset."

Tigress stopped walking, and looked at Su. She studied Su's face for a moment, trying to find any ulterior motives sketched there. Upon finding nothing but concern, she sighed.

"I can't tell you much, but know that Jin's story is not for the light of heart. When you ask Jin about the program, and I know you will eventually, please be very careful. He tries to act macho, and carefree, but sometimes I swear I can see a frightened child behind those eyes. It only becomes more evident when he's approached with something like this."

Su nodded slowly, and the pair began their search again.


	35. Tendencies

**Well, derp.**

**My own insolence and stupidity continues to amaze.**

**Smiles1998: Yes, though it's normally followed by people throwing things at said speaker.**

**Sweetluckygirl: I seem to have a habit of doing exactly that, huh?**

**Puckabrinaluver: Resounding 'yays' across the board.**

**FirePupXFlameKitten-4EverBond: First off, holy crap that name. Secondly, yes. :)**

**Christ's Disciple: You know, yours is the only name here where the spell check doesn't yell at me. In bright red. On that note, one does not simply trot in Maredor.**

**Dreams-Of-Ash: This is not a fanfiction directed by Michael Bay. :)**

**The Surreal Reality: Huzzah, a new reader! I sincerely thank you for the compliment. I'm not sure I agree, but I am grateful either way.**

**Ekwok: Awesome climax ending? What do you take me for, a fanfiction writer? Wait...**

**Guest: Right here.**

**Anyway, I'd like to say something real quick before you go on to read this. This is not _exactly_ a chapter. It's more of a small comedy bit I wrote a little while ago in my spare time. Depending on your reactions, it may be left in as canon. I certainly would like to think it's funny.**

**I was in a silly mood.**

**Disclaimer: I own only my OCs and the plot. The rest is DreamWorks.**

* * *

**Jade Palace Courtyard**

"So..." Su interrupted the silence currently reigning over the two.

"Yes?"

"The panda?"

Tigress momentarily paused in her stride, but quickly returned to her normal pace, determined not to show any form of apprehension.

"What about him?" She replied in not-too-subtle apathy.

"Oh please." Su stopped and grinned widely. "Don't even try it. I can see it from a mile away, I don't know how the rest haven't realized it yet."

Tigress thought for a moment about how to get out of this conversation, but soon gave up on the endeavor. She turned and confronted Su, having decided on the perfect strategy. She smiled a wide smile, obvious mischief glinting in her eyes.

"I love him."

Su was taken aback, her own smile wavering in lieu of this unexpected turn. She recovered, and was about to make her own comment, which would have been witty, had she been allowed to make it.

"I will also take no shit from you, or anyone else for that matter, on the subject. You will treat both me, and him, with respect, and keep your distance."

Su was floored, flinching back a bit, as Tigress continued the onslaught in the middle of the courtyard.

"These are my rules, and I suggest you do not break them; Say nothing to the others, make no rude or otherwise unseemly remarks about our impending relationship, and DO NOT test my patience." Tigress took this moment to begin advancing on Su, who backed up every step.

"I have taken down warlords."

Step.

"I have made grown men, trained to kill from birth, cry."

Step.

"I beat the Dragon Warrior in spars, daily, and without breaking a sweat."

She took one last step, and stared directly into Su's eyes.

"Over the coming days, I plan on getting very close to said panda. We will probably begin dating, whether he likes it or not. I think he will. We may begin showing our emotions in public. He will probably try to give me some ridiculous nickname, like kitty. I will hand him his own big fluffy butt." Tigress was now sporting a grin, not so much as mischievous, as it was simply being happy.

"And through all of this, you will say nothing. Am I clear?"

Su nodded fervently.

"Good. Can we focus on finding Jin now?"

Another nod, though less panicked.

"Now you see why she scares me."

Both girls looked around, searching for the voice's origin. They finally found it, in the shadows overlooking one of the buildings. Two yellow eyes appeared, and Jin stepped out into the open.

"She's rather good at being intimidating, eh?"

"Jin!" Su ran up, and hugged him, much to his surprise. She released him, and Jin started to speak.

"Well, if that's what happens every time I disappear, I should do it more oft-"

Su smacked him across the face, leaving him confused, and with a paw shaped red mark on his muzzle.

"Let me finish!" Su yelled angrily. "Do not ever just run off like that, do you hear me?"

Jin was at a loss for words, deciding instead to simply just stare back.

"Uhhh..."

"Now, you and I are going to have a long talk. It is going to be uncomfortable, you're not going to like it, and it's going to happen anyway. Mmkay?"

Jin's mind was racing, and he was still trying to catch up with the situation when he realized he was being led away by Su, farther away from the courtyard. He looked back over his shoulder, and saw Tigress standing there, smirking. Mouthing 'help' to her only made her grin increase.

Eventually, the two disappeared from Tigress' sight, and she shook her head and began walking back to the kitchen.

**Outlying Jade Palace Courtyard**

"Well, that was informative." Mantis deadpanned, as he watched Tigress walk away.

"You said it, bro. Totally worth missing out on some extra soup." Monkey agreed. "Pretty funny, too. I've got material for months, now."

"I can't believe you guys convinced me to do this." Viper calmly said, shaking her head. "It's an invasion of privacy."

"Like you regret having done it."

Through all of this, Po stood there, eyes glazed over. Finally, he blinked a few times, slowly coming back to his senses.

"I... I..." Po violently whipped his head around, gaining some semblance of normality back. "What just happened?"

"I believe the tiger one just threatened the Wu sister, and simultaneously declared her love for you." Croc said, chuckling to himself. "And then the mighty assassin was dragged off by his ear."

"I thought so."

"Dude."

"Yeah?"

"You are so screwed!" Mantis, Monkey and Croc all began laughing their heads off, rolling on the floor.

Po rolled his eyes, and then smiled when he came to a realization.

"And what do you think will happen to you, when Tigress goes back to the kitchen, to find it empty?"

All laughing stopped immediately, replaced by looks of horror.

"Damn."

* * *

**And there it is, in all it's glory. Was it funny? Do you want to keep it in the story as what actually happened?**

**Let me know all of this, and more, in the next episode of...**

**DRAGON BALL Z!**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**

**Also, 50k words! Suck it!**

**I mean, thank you! Yes, that's what I meant.**


	36. Interlude

**As of this moment, The First Storm is cancelled.**

**I'm joking of course.**

**...**

**That was probably mean. Apologies.**

**At any rate, you're all probably wondering why the next chapter is taking so long. Not that this is really a surprise for some of you.**

**No fear, it will be done.**

**You see, after that last one, you guys made this story break 20k views in less than an hour.**

**I was happy.**

**I wanted to reward you guys.**

**Unfortunately, I'm also stupid, so that didn't work out as planned.**

**My goal was to make an extra long chapter, longer than any previous ones.**

**In doing so, the structure got a bit haywire. I couldn't find a spot to end it, to break off into the following chapter.**

**I very nearly completed the story. (The chapter was about 25k words in the end. The _chapter_)**

**I know some of you wouldn't mind that. Hell, you might be ecstatic.**

**But I'm a perfectionist. The chapter's structure was not how I normally write, and the entire thing felt _wrong_.**

**Sigh.**

**I have already punished myself for this transgression.**

**By punching a tree in my backyard 100 times.**

**(No worries, I couldn't feel any of it. Funny story that, it's partly why I enjoyed the KFP series so much, I had done the same thing as Tigress since I was about 8 or so. Seeing a character like that made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.)**

**But, back to the topic at hand.**

**The revised version of said chapter is being worked on. My guess as to the completion date would be 3 or 4 days from now.**

**_However_.**

**I'm not leaving you hanging just yet.**

**By the end of today, tomorrow morning at the latest, I'll be publishing a new 1-shot. Something I've had in my desktop files for a little while now.**

**I just have to go over it again, to make sure it's ready.**

**(EDIT) It is now published. Begone!**

**...**

**Yep.**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


	37. Trials

**I apologize PROFUSELY for my absence. I've had a lot of stuff happening lately. Keep tuned in at the end, though. I've got some BIG news to share with you all, and you're not going to want to miss it.**

**Oh, and that 1-shot I promised was uploaded. Just thought I'd tell you. (Insert shameless plug here)**

**Smiles1998: I took my time, unfortunately. Again, I promise, I WILL finish this story. I WILL NOT abandon, I know how it feels to like a story and see that happen.**

**The Pizza Man: I didn't think it would go this far, either, to be honest. Originally, I had just wanted to see if I could write something good, and here we are.**

**Oh, and yes, I did punch trees. There's a pretty sizable dent in one in my backyard. With a red tint to it. Yay.**

**Alpha BA7: It was your birthday? Well damn. I feel like such a jerk now.**

**TigerDiva11: That was a lot of reviews. Thank you. It doesn't bother me, it's just as if you were there from the beginning. I'm glad you like my story.**

**FirePupxFlameKitten-4EverBond: Tigress isn't that mean. Well...**

**I own only my OCs, and the plot. DreamWorks owns the rest.**

* * *

"You have exactly five seconds to explain why I shouldn't kill you where you stand."

The others, wide-eyed and sweating, simply remained silent, wary of invoking the tiger's wrath.

"Five-"

"Wait!"

They turned, watching as Po ran up to the group, huffing all the way.

"Wait. Just... Give me a second." He collapsed on the ground, muttering something about not quite yet being able to defeat his worst enemy. "Did you guys _have_ to run so far away? I do still have my limits."

"When she's chasing us? Yes." Mantis replied, watching with minor amusement at the panda's state.

"She always catches you anyway, though!" Po whined, but now recovering, and getting up.

"Perhaps, but at least it buys us a few extra seconds of life."

"Po, this doesn't concern you. They were the ones eavesdropping on matters that don't apply to them." Tigress said this last part throwing a glare out of the corner of her eye. It was still enough to make them shudder.

"But it was my idea!" Po shouted, and too late realized his mistake. He threw his paws over his mouth, in a hopeless attempt to take back the words. "I-I mean, umm..."

"Yes?"

He sighed, and drooped his head. "I got nothing."

"Since you were there for the conversation, I assume you remember the last thing I told Su about?"

At this point, Po was trying his absolute hardest to disappear, and considering his stature, his efforts would, in another situation, be quite admirable. As it happens, however, he was not succeeding.

"Yes."

"Oh good, do you think you could remind me? My memory seems to be a bit hazy right now."

"Something about my butt..." Po meekly answered.

"I'm sorry, what was that?"

"Handing me my own big fluffy butt."

"On a silver platter." Tigress amended, and concluded.

Meanwhile, the others were just watching with small smiles, silently snickering, happy in the prospect that the fury was now directed elsewhere.

"Do I get boyfriend head-start rights?"

Tigress rolled her eyes. "Very well," she said, nodding. "But only half a minute."

"A full minute."

"Don't push it, panda."

He ran, then, at a speed she had previously thought impossible for him. She began counting in her head, until she noticed the audience, still next to her.

"I'm not done with you lot, yet. Not by a long shot."

**The Next Morning, Barracks**

_Gong!_

The masters were each at their doors, having gotten up by reflex, before they realized something.

"Wait, who rang the gong?"

"Who else?" They all turned to see Shifu standing at the end of the corridor, looking just as they had remembered him, albeit with a few bandages across his body. "As if I'd let anyone else ring the gong, much less one of you, after last time."

"Shifu! You're alright!" Po hastily made his way to hug him, only to get an armful of air.

"Yes Po, I am fine. It will take a lot more than a single person, lord or not, to end me." He then smirked. "Or to make me lose my quick reflexes."

Po walked back to his door, muttering under his breath about how no one should avoid hugs on instinct.

"Is something wrong with all of you? You seem a bit... battered." Shifu said, gesturing towards a few members of the furious five, who, in fact, did seem a bit out of sorts.

"Oh, no, sir. We're absolutely fine. Learned a lesson, in fact."

"Oh?" Shifu smiled, likely already knowing the answer. "And what was that?"

"Never underestimate what can be done in thirty seconds." Monkey deadpanned.

"I see..." Shifu stated, then turned his attention elsewhere.

"Masters Croc and Ox, I was glad to hear you made it safely. We are in need of some rather important discussions, of which I would appreciate you joining me after breakfast for."

Both masters nodded, each throwing a glance at the Wu sisters next to them, still curious as to a few details, though the first and foremost question was the whereabouts of the elder sister, as her room's door was still closed.

"Where is Su?" Croc voiced his concern.

Both remaining sisters looked a bit nervous, not quite meeting eye contact.

"Never mind her, she is not a member of the palace, she may get up when she will." Shifu said, saving them, though from what he was uncertain. "I'm surprised that you two get up, as it were. The only one I am concerned about..." He trailed off, looking at each master in turn. "Am I to assume Jin has not lost his preference to the roof, then, judging by his absence?" After receiving a few nods, he lifted his staff, and knocked it against the ceiling roughly.

Receiving no response, he hit it again, with similar results.

"Jin!"

"Yes?" Responded a tired voice, clearly from someone who had just woken up. They all looked, and saw a Jin's head peeking out from a door. Shifu was about to ask, until realization dawned. On all of them. Well, except one, clueless leopard.

"Look, guys, I appreciate the whole, 'wake up before the sun does' thing as much as the next guy, but can we keep it down a bit? I didn't get much sleep last night."

They just kept staring.

"What? Do I have something on my fac-" His eyes went about as wide as they could, and with a yelp, pulled his head back, and slammed the door shut.

Silence reigned for a few minutes, until Mantis could no longer resist.

"Well, at least we know how his conversation with Su went."

**Enemy Camp**

Finally, things were looking up. More soldiers had arrived, and the plan was falling into place. It wouldn't be long, now...

"Commander!"

"Sir?!" The soldier snapped to attention. "Aren't you supposed to still be in the infirmary?"

"I am not _supposed _to be anywhere, commander. I discharged myself. And the good doctor, as it were."

The commander gulped, praying that he wasn't in line for that.

"You are."

"S-sir?"

"You were probably wondering if you had gained yourself a spot on my list. You did."

"P-please, sir! I was just t-trying to-"

"Enough of your babbling! Fortunately for you, Jin is higher on my list, and you've proven yourself to be useful. Try not to change that."

"Y-yes sir!"

"As for my mental state, it is very much intact, commander. I was simply overtired."

"Apologies, sir."

"Carry on." As Amadus watched the soldier march away, his mind was racing with thoughts.

_He thinks he can upstart MY operation?! I've done everything, prepared for every possibility! I will not have everything jeopardized. Not when _they_ can still see me... _

_And nothing will stop me now._

**Jade Palace**

"So what do you think they're doing?"

Breakfast had started a few minutes ago, and after Croc and Ox finished, they excused themselves to go and speak with Shifu, leaving behind very quiet, and very awkward masters. They had tried as many different avenues of conversation, but eyes would still eventually lean towards Jin and Su, both of whom were busying themselves with their food.

"What do you think, Monkey?" Tigress accompanied. "He's probably just bringing them up to date, including the current plan of attack."

"I wasn't talking about Shifu."

A few snickers sounded through the room, prompting Jin to sigh.

"Alright, that's it. You and me, Mantis. Right now, in the clearing infront of the training hall."

Mantis mentally backpedaled, scrounging for a response, but finding none.

"Can I at least pick a partner?"

"Do you really think it would help?"

"Maybe I'd only get half of the beating. That's a win in my book."

"Fine. But then I get a partner, too."

A few minutes later, they were all gathered outside. Jin walked to the front, and addressed them.

"Alright, we're gonna do this the way we did it back where I'm from. The challenged party chooses an event, and then the challenger does. If there is a tie, a tiebreaker round involving an event chosen by an audience is decided. Any questions?"

"Do you really think we have time for this? There is a war about to occur, you know." Tigress blankly said, though Jin either didn't hear her, or decided to ignore her.

He simply smiled, and continued.

"Good, then we can continue. Mantis, your choice for partner?"

"Po!" He shouted, completely deadset. "What? You didn't think I'd pick the Dragon Warrior?"

"Oh no, I expected it. I choose Su. And before you decide to make a comment on that, remember who she is, who I am, and who you're about to be dueling."

The two walked forward, joining their partners in the clearing.

"Your first choice, Mantis?"

Mantis smirked, clearly very happy with himself.

"Food eating contest!"

Everyone groaned, including Po to their surprise.

"Come on, man! I was just starting to lose some weight!" He complained.

"Relax, Po. It's just more for Tigress to make kissy-faces at."

"I'm standing right here, Mantis."

"R-right... Anyway, first team to finish one hundred bean buns wins!"

"Is that all?" Jin asked, exasperated.

"Why? You scared?" Mantis jeered, a few 'oohs' emanating from the crowd.

"Mantis, the last time I was scared, it was when I was nine and had just seen a man's head chopped off."

That, as Jin had predicted, shut Mantis right up.

"Let's get this over with."

**Four Minutes Later**

Mantis stared, dumbfounded. There were still twenty bean buns left in his and Po's bowl, and all the two of them could do was stare.

Stare at the eating monstrosity that was apparently Su.

"How..." Po finally managed. "_I _can't even eat that fast!"

"Years of practice." She said, wiping off her mouth with a napkin. Even Jin looked a bit dumbfounded.

"Alright, well." Jin started. "Following that... interesting display, I do believe it's my turn to choose."

"How did you know I would choose a food-eating contest?" Mantis practically yelled. "And how did you know Su could eat like that?" He asked, looking at her with a newfound respect.

"I didn't." Seeing Mantis was unconvinced, he explained. "Well, I knew you'd choose something as mundane as that, though I had no idea about Su. I had expected to use the tiebreaker."

Mantis sat back down, feeling a bit defeated.

"Now, as for my choice..." Jin's face turned a bit devious.

"Swordplay."

* * *

**Oh, damn! Someone's in trouble. Alright, now, for the big news.**

**We have a contest incoming!**

**I need a new OC. I was originally just going to make him myself, but then I had an idea.**

**You guys get to make him/her.**

**Backstory, physical appearance, skills, et cetera.**

**PM me the details, and within a few days, I will set up a poll on my page, where you can all vote for your favorites, from the ones I deemed suitable.**

**Now, I can't enforce this obviously, but I would appreciate you not all voting for your own if you see it there.**

**Let the games begin!**

**Dark Shade 75 signing off.**


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